β-Catenin Enhances Odontoblastic Differentiation of Dental Pulp Cells through Activation of Runx2

Abstract

An intense stimulus can cause death of odontoblasts and initiate odontoblastic differentiation of stem/progenitor cell populations of dental pulp cells (DPCs), which is followed by reparative dentin formation. However, the mechanism of odontoblastic differentiation during reparative dentin formation remains unclear. This study was to determine the role of β-catenin, a key player in tooth development, in reparative dentin formation, especially in odontoblastic differentiation. We found that β-catenin was expressed in odontoblast-like cells and DPCs beneath the perforation site during reparative dentin formation after direct pulp capping. The expression of β-catenin was also significantly upregulated during odontoblastic differentiation of in vitro cultured DPCs. The expression pattern of runt-related transcription factor 2 (Runx2) was similar to that of β-catenin. Immunofluorescence staining indicated that Runx2 was also expressed in β-catenin–positive odontoblast-like cells and DPCs during reparative dentin formation. Knockdown of β-catenin disrupted odontoblastic differentiation, which was accompanied by a reduction in β-catenin binding to the Runx2 promoter and diminished expression of Runx2. In contrast, lithium chloride (LiCl) induced accumulation of β-catenin produced the opposite effect to that caused by β-catenin knockdown. In conclusion, it was reported in this study for the first time that β-catenin can enhance the odontoblastic differentiation of DPCs through activation of Runx2, which might be the mechanism involved in odontoblastic differentiation during reparative dentin formation.

Expression of KLF5 in odontoblastic differentiation of dental pulp cells during in vitro odontoblastic induction and in vivo dental repair

“…, Han et al . ). Briefly, after obtaining informed consent, healthy premolars were collected from patients according to the guidelines approved by the Ethics Committee of Tongji Hospital.…”

“…Conditions for lentivirus infection were as previously described (Han et al . ). Flow cytometry (FCM) analysis was used to assess the efficiency of lentivirus infection.…”

“…, Han et al . ). Briefly, 24 male Wistar rats were intraperitoneally anaesthetized with 10% chloral hydrate (5 mL kg −1 ).…”

“…, Han et al . ). They are potential sources of cell‐based therapy for regenerative endodontic treatment.…”

“…), which has been shown to enhance odontoblastic differentiation of DPCs (Han et al . ). In this study, it was hypothesized that KLF5 contributed to the odontoblastic differentiation of DPCs.…”