Isolation and characterization of pig enamelins.

Enamel proteins were extracted from pig developing enamel by sequential extraction procedures. Two proteins identified as enamelins by slab-gel electrophoresis (Mr 67,000 and 63,000) were separated from amelogenins by gel sieving and ion-exchange chromatography. Their enamelin characteristic was confirmed by hydroxyapatite-binding studies and amino acid analysis. Degradation of extracted enamel proteins was also studied in vitro. The larger of the two enamelins appeared to be resistant to degradation by endogenous enamel proteinases. Hydroxyapatite showed strong binding with the enamelins, but did not prevent the degradation of the Mr-63,000 enamelin. These results indicate that at least one high-Mr enamelin in pig developing enamel is a source of enamelin breakdown products.