animal tooth development Tooth development or odontogenesis is the process in which teeth develop and grow into the mouth. Tooth development varies among species. Tooth development in vertebrates Fish In fish, Hox gene expression regulates mechanisms for teeth, tooth ...

, the stellate reticulum is a group of

cells Cell most often refers to: * Cell (biology), the functional basic unit of life * Cellphone, a phone connected to a cellular network * Clandestine cell, a penetration-resistant form of a secret or outlawed organization * Electrochemical cell, a d ...

located in the center of the

enamel organ The enamel organ, also known as the dental organ, is a cellular aggregation seen in a developing tooth and it lies above the dental papilla. The enamel organ which is differentiated from the primitive oral epithelium lining the stomodeum. The en ...

of a developing

tooth A tooth (: teeth) is a hard, calcified structure found in the jaws (or mouths) of many vertebrates and used to break down food. Some animals, particularly carnivores and omnivores, also use teeth to help with capturing or wounding prey, tea ...

. These cells are star-shaped (hence ''stellate'') and synthesize

glycosaminoglycan Glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) or mucopolysaccharides are long, linear polysaccharides consisting of repeating disaccharide units (i.e. two-sugar units). The repeating two-sugar unit consists of a uronic sugar and an amino sugar, except in the case o ...

s. As glycosaminoglycans are produced,

water Water is an inorganic compound with the chemical formula . It is a transparent, tasteless, odorless, and Color of water, nearly colorless chemical substance. It is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known liv ...

is drawn in between the cells, stretching them apart. As they are moved further away from one another, the stellate reticular cells maintain contact with one another through

desmosome A desmosome (; "binding body"), also known as a macula adherens (plural: maculae adherentes) (Latin for ''adhering spot''), is a cell structure specialized for cell-to-cell adhesion. A type of junctional complex, they are localized spot-like ad ...

s, resulting in their unique appearance. The stellate reticulum is lost after the first layer of enamel is laid down. This brings cells in the inner enamel epithelium closer to blood vessels at the periphery.

References

* Orbans Oral histology and embryology – 10th ed. * Cate, A.R. Ten. Oral Histology: development, structure, and function. 5th ed. 1998. . * Ross, Michael H., Gordon I. Kaye, and Wojciech Pawlina. Histology: a text and atlas. 4th edition. 2003. . Tooth development {{dentistry-stub