Associate Professor (214) 828-8134 Room: 442 lopperman@bcd.tamhsc.edu Growth Factor Regulation of Suture Morphogenesis, in vitro Models of Craniosynostosis, Intramembranous Bone Growth.

:: Research / Professional Interests

Dr Lynne Opperman’s main area of research is to elucidate the mechanisms by which growth factors regulate cranial vault suture morphogenesis and patency.  She continues to examine the mechanisms by which Tgf-ß2 and Tgf-b3 regulate suture patency, and has begun exploring the interactions between Tgf-b3 and Tgf-b2 and Fgf2 signaling in regulating suture patency.  Dr. Opperman is also interested in growth regulation at the facial sutures and has expanded her research to look at the role of the nasal capsular cartilages (NCC) in regulating facial transpalatal (TP) and midpalatal (MP) suture morphogenesis and patency.  Dr. Opperman has extended her studies to in vivo models where she has shown histologically that Tgf-ß3 rescues rat interfrontal sutures from bony obliteration. As a further tool to explore control of craniofacial growth and development, Dr. Opperman is determining the strain rate across treated versus non-treated sutures to establish if histologically patent rescued sutures distribute strain in the same way as normally patent sutures.

Another area of focus for Dr. Opperman is the development and growth of the cranial base synchondroses.  She has established a role for hyaluronan in regulating synchondrosal cartilage hypertrophy and demonstrated an inhibitory effect of TGF-b1 on hypertrophy in these cartilages.

Dr. Opperman has served on the executive board of both the American Association of Anatomists and the Craniofacial Group of the International Association of Dental Research, as well as serving as the President of the Dallas chapter of the American Association of Dental Research.  She is presently the Councilor of the Dallas chapter of the American Association of Dental Research.  Dr. Opperman is presently the Speaker, and has served as a past Speaker and Deputy Speaker of the Texas A&M University System Health Science Center Faculty Senate.  Dr. Opperman is on the editorial boards of the journals Developmental Dynamics and Journal of Bone and Mineral Research, and is on the advisory board of the Journal of Endodontics.

:: Education

University of Virginia Medical School, Charlottesville, VA
Postdoctoral Fellowship (1991-1996), The Department of Plastic Surgery,
University of Virginia Medical School, Charlottesville, VA
Postdoctoral Fellowship (1989-1990), The Department of Pathology,
University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
Ph.D.(1985), Developmental Biology
University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
B.Sc. (Hons)(1980), Zoology
University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
B.Sc. (1979), Zoology and Psychology

:: Career History

:: Teaching Responsibilities

Prenatal Craniofacial Development (course director), Cell and Molecular Biology of Oral and Craniofacial Tissues, Graduate Student Colloquium (course director), General Histology (course director) and research mentor for D.D.S. specialty students.

:: Recent Grants

:: Recent Publications

1. Opperman LA, Adab K, Gakunga PT 2000 TGF-b2 and TGF-b3 regulate fetal rat cranial suture morphogenesis by regulating levels of cell proliferation and apoptosis. (File Size: 507 KB) Dev Dynam 219:237-247.
2. Gakunga PT, Kuboki Y, Opperman LA 2000 Hyaluronan is essential for lacunae expansion during longitudinal growth of the cranial base synchondrosis. J Craniofac Genet Dev Biol 20:53-63.
3. Opperman LA 2000 Sutures as intramembranous bone growth sites. (File Size: 293 KB) Dev Dynam 219:472-485.
4. Sykaras N, Triplett RG, Nunn ME, Iacopino AM, Opperman, LA 2001 Effect of recombinant human bone morphogenetic protein-2 on bone regeneration and osseointegration of dental implants.  (File Size: 510 KB) Clin Oral Implants Res 12:339-349
5. Opperman LA,Galanis V, Williams AR, Adab K 2002 Transforming growth factor-beta 3 (Tgf-ß3) down-regulates Tgf-ß receptor type I (Tßr-I) during rescue of cranial sutures from osseous obliteration.  (File Size: 495 KB) Ortho Craniofac Res 5:5-16
6. Opperman LA, Moursi A, Sayne JR, Wintergerst AM 2002 Transforming growth factor-beta 3 (Tgf-b3) in a collagen gel delays fusion of the rat posterior interfrontal suture in vivo. (File Size: 3.42 MB)Anat Rec 267:120-130.
7. Adab K, Sayne JR, Carlson DS, Opperman LA 2002 TGF-ß1, TGF-ß2, TGF-ß3 and Msx2 expression is elevated during frontonasal suture morphogenesis and during active postnatal facial growth. (File Size: 382 KB) Ortho Craniofac Res 5:227-237
8. Dominguez MS, Witherspoon DE, Gutmann JL, Opperman LA 2003 Histological and scanning electron microscopy assessment of various vital pulp-therapy materials. J Endo 29:324-333.
9. Perez AL, Spears R, Gutmann JL, Opperman LA 2003 Osteoblasts and MG-63 osteosarcoma cells behave differently when in contact with ProRoot MTA and white MTA. (File Size: 270 KB) Int Endo J 36:564-570.
10. Sykaras N, Opperman LA 2003 Bone morphogenetic proteins: How do they function and what can they offer the clinician? (File Size: 478 KB) J Oral Sci 45:57-73.
11. Chong SL, Mitchell R, Moursi AM, Winnard P, Losken HW, Bradley J, Ozerdem O, Azari K, Acarturk O, Opperman LA, Siegel MI, Mooney MP 2003 Rescue of Coronal Suture Fusion using Transforming Growth Factor-Beta 3 (Tgf-ß3) in Rabbits with Delayed-Onset Craniosynostosis. (File Size: 458 KB) Anat Rec 274:962-971.
12. Adab K, Sayne JR, Carlson DS, Opperman LA 2003 Nasal capsular cartilage is required for maintenance of patent transpalatal sutures during fetal rat facial morphogenesis. (File Size: 1.83 MB) Differentiation 71:496-505.
13. Sigalas E, Regan JD, Kramer PR, Witherspoon DE, Opperman LA 2004 Survival of human periodontal ligament cells in media proposed for transport of avulsed teeth. (File Size: 228 KB) J Traumatol 20:21-28.
14. Trasatti C, Spears R, Gutmann JL, Opperman LA 2004 Increased Tgf-ß1 Production by Rat Osteoblasts in the Presence of Pep Gen P-15™ In Vitro. (File Size: 469 KB) J Endo 30:213-217.
15. Mooney MP, Moursi A, Opperman LA, Siegel MI 2004 Cytokine therapy of craniosynostosis. Expert Opin Biol Ther 4:279-299.
16. Al-Awadhi S, Spears R, Gutmann JL, Opperman LA 2004 Cultured Primary Osteoblast Viability and Apoptosis in the Presence of Root Canal Sealers. (File Size: 1.06 MB) J Endo 30:527-533.
17. Poisson E, Sciote JJ, Koepsel R, Cooper GM, Opperman LA, Mooney MP 2004 Tgfb isoform expression in the perisutural tissues of craniosynostotic rabbits. (File Size: 507 KB) Cleft Palate Craniofac J 41:392-402.
18. Ham KA, Witherspoon DE, Gutmann JL, Ravindranath S, Gait TC, Opperman LA Evaluation of BMP-2 Expression and Histological Characteristics During Apexification with Calcium Hydroxide and Mineral Trioxide Aggregate. J Endo (In Press).
19. Shibazaki R, Maki K, Tachikawa T, Shibasaki Y, Hinton RJ, Carlson DS, Opperman LA Changes in PTHrP and 3D Bone Structure of the Mandibular Condyle Following Mandibular Distraction Osteogenesis in Growing Rats. J Oral Maxillofac Surg (In Press).
20. Opperman LA, Gakunga PT, Carlson DS Genetic factors influencing morphogenesis and growth of sutures and synchondroses in the craniofacial complex. Seminars in Ortho (In Press).