A Signaling-Threshold Framework for Human Tooth Agenesis: Integrating Molecular Genetics with Developmental Field Theory
Anna Ewa Kuc, Paulina Kuc, Natalia Kuc, Magdalena Sulewska, Marzena Tylicka, Michał Sarul · 2026
Read A Signaling-Threshold Framework for Human Tooth Agenesis: Integrating Molecular Genetics with Developmental Field Theory by Anna Ewa Kuc, Paulina Kuc, Natalia Kuc, Magdalena Sulewska, Marzena Tylicka, Michał Sarul (2026) in the Tower of Babel, a free online library of public-domain works preserved in clean, searchable text. No sign-up. The full text is served as a plain-text file at a predictable URL, where text is present: https://antarctic-labs.com/tower-of-babel/pmc-13207132.txt.
Description
Anna Ewa Kuc and five co-authors wrote a 2026 review proposing a threshold model for why some teeth never form. Missing teeth, from a few absent (hypodontia) to many (oligodontia), are common developmental anomalies. Their wide variability, why one tooth fails and its neighbor forms, lacked a unifying explanation.
The review gathers evidence on signals exchanged between tissue layers as teeth start. Four pathways, Wnt, BMP, FGF, and Sonic hedgehog, act together. Disease genes such as MSX1, PAX9, WNT10A, and AXIN2 tune those pathways up or down rather than switching teeth on or off. In the model, a tooth starts only if combined signaling passes a threshold that varies across the dental arch. Signal strength and timing then explain uneven loss, one-sided gaps, and wide severity. The framework joins genetics with classic field theory.
Catalog record
| CREATOR | Anna Ewa Kuc, Paulina Kuc, Natalia Kuc, Magdalena Sulewska, Marzena Tylicka, Michał Sarul |
|---|---|
| YEAR | 2026 |
| COLLECTION | PAPERS |
| FORMAT | TXT |
| FILE SIZE | 41 KB |
| VERSION | 1.0 |
| LICENSE | CC BY 4.0 |
| RIGHTS | CC BY |
| SOURCE | Europe PMC |