Stem Cells in Tooth Tissue Regeneration—Challenges and Limitations

Abstract

The accelerated pace of research in the stem cell field in recent decades and the accumulated body of knowledge has spurred the interest in potential clinical applications of stem cells in all branches of medicine including regenerative dentistry. In humans, embryonic and adult stem cells are two major groups of cells that can serve as a donor source in tissue engineering strategies based on ex-vivo cellular expansion. It has been shown that adult stem cell populations are present in all examined living tissues of the organism, thus being a crucial source of tissue homeostasis and regeneration, and offering a target population for in situ stimulation of extensive tissue regeneration. Experimental findings indicate that in the complex structure of the tooth organ, both periodontal and endodontic tissues harbour adult stem cells with characteristics peculiar to early stages of cellular differentiation. Myriad of strategies incorporating both embryonic and adult stem cells for the regeneration of a particular tooth structure or the whole teeth were proposed; however their successful application to solve real problems encountered in the clinical practice of dentistry remains an elusive and challenging objective.

Differentiation of Mesenchymal Stem Cells from Human Umbilical Cord Tissue into Odontoblast-Like Cells Using the Conditioned Medium of Tooth Germ CellsIn Vitro

“…The current knowledge suggests that over 300 types of genes, 100 varieties of growth and differentiation factors, and multiple relevant signaling molecules are involved in the dynamic process of tooth development. During this process, the spectrum and concentration of a large number of substances change continuously until the completion of tooth eruption is achieved [26, 35]. In addition, tooth germ cell-conditioned medium may be one of the best choices for this culture condition, as previous studies have suggested that the mixture of soluble factors secreted from the epithelial and mesenchymal cells of developing tooth germs creates an odontogenic microenvironment that could guide the differentiation of odontogenic and nonodontogenic cells along the odontoblast lineage [20, 26, 36].…”

Wnt and BMP signaling crosstalk in regulating dental stem cells: Implications in dental tissue engineering

“…The main stem cell populations of NDMSCs include BMSCs, 20 MSCs from peripheral nerve-associated glia, adipose tissue-derived MSCs (ADSCs), and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) 39, 40, 41, 42. BMSCs exhibit capacity for adipogenic and osteogenic differentiation 43 .…”

Dental Pulp Stem Cells and Tissue Engineering Strategies for Clinical Application on Odontoiatric Field

“…The regenerative response of teeth to damage and structural degeneration are diverse and compartment-dependent, since teeth, as complex structures, harbour both living (periodontal ligament, cementum, pulp) and acellular (enamel, dentine) tissues. Of all the dental structures, only enamel is incapable of regenerating its original structure, while the remaining tissues possess that capacity in varying degrees, dependent on multiple factors (Inanç & Elçin, 2011). The dental pulp plays a major role in tooth regeneration after injury, by participating in a process called reparative dentinogenesis.…”