Objective: To examine the mRNA expression of activin A(ACT A) and follistatin(FS) during mandibular lengthening and to elucidate the regulating pattern of during mandibular distraction osteogenesis.
Methods: Skeletally mature white New Zealand rabbits were established right mandibular distraction osteogenesis models and the mandibles were lengthened 7 days after osteomy. At the end of latency period and the end of distraction period, 10, 20, 30, 40 and 60 days after fixation, the regenerating tissue of animals' lengthened mandibles and that of the other side normal mandibles were harvested to extract RNA and to analyse ACT A, FS mRNA by RT-PCR.
Results: The expression of ACT A mRNA was not detectable in normal bone tissue and ACT A mRNA began to express at the end of latency period. The expression of ACT A mRNA increased gradually along with the beginning of distraction and reached the peak on the 10th and 20th days of distraction which was 5.04 and 4.98 times as much as that of the end of latency period, respectively. The trend of expression of FS mRNA during mandibular distraction osteogenesis was the same as expression of ACT A mRNA.
Conclusion: ACT A/FS play an important role during rabbit mandibular distraction osteogenesis. To examine the mRNA expression of activin A(ACT A) and follistatin(FS) during mandibular lengthening and to elucidate the regulating pattern of during mandibular distraction osteogenesis.