Abstract
The present study utilizing histozymography was undertaken to localize gelatinolytic activities in the epithelium and mesenchyme of embryonic mouse secondary palate. At the stages of vertical position through elevation, the mesenchyme of the palatal shelves exhibited relatively strong gelatinolytic activities, whereas the epithelia covering the palatal shelves did not show distinctive gelatinolytic activities. The location of gelatinolytic activities in the mesenchyme changed markedly after the palatal shelves started reorientation. Modest to strong enzymatic activities were first elicited in the medial edge epithelium (MEE), when the bilateral palatal processes confronted each other prior to their contact. RT-PCR analysis also confirmed the mRNA expression of MMP-2, MMP-9, MT1-MMP, and TIMP-1 in the palatal shelves at the corresponding developmental stages. The results obtained support the view that the spatiotemporal regulation of gelatinolytic activities is a key factor to reorganization of the epithelial and mesenchymal components during embryonic palate morphogenesis.
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