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 enamel organ is responsible for the formation of enamel, initiation of dentine formation, establishment of the shape of a tooth's crown, and establishment of the dentoenamel junction.

The enamel organ has four layers; the inner enamel epithelium, outer enamel epithelium, stratum intermedium, and the stellate reticulum.

The dental papilla, the differentiated ectomesenchyme deep to the enamel organ, will produce dentin and the dental pulp. The surrounding ectomesenchyme tissue, the dental follicle, is the primitive cementum, periodontal ligament and alveolar bone beneath the tooth root. The site where the internal enamel epithelium and external enamel epithelium coalesce is the cervical root, important in proliferation of the dental root.

Tooth development begins at week 6 in utero, in the oral epithelium. The process is divided into three stages:

At the end of week 7 i.u., localised proliferations of cells in the dental laminae form round and oval swellings known as tooth buds, which will eventually develop into mesenchymal cells and surround the enamel organ. Each epithelial swelling and the surrounding mesenchymal cells form a tooth germ.

Tooth germs are the primitive structure of teeth; their formation is in three distinct stages: bud stage, cap stage, bell stage.

The stages are based on the degree of development of enamel organ. Oral epithelium forms the tooth enamel while the ectomesenchyme forms the pulp and dentine of the tooth. The ectomesenchyme lies deep to the oral epithelium.

This is the initial stage of tooth development, which occurs at week 8 i.u.. Proliferation of dental lamina occurs, forming small tooth buds which are spherical or ovoid condensations of epithelial cells, now known as the enamel organ. The enamel organ consists of peripherally located, low columnar cells and centrally located polygonal cells. The enamel organ is also surrounded by proliferating mesenchymal cells, which results in the condensation of two distinct areas: