Abstract

Stem cells, such as adult stem cells or embryonic stem cells, are the most important seed cells employed in tooth tissue engineering. Even though dental-derived stem cells are a good source of seed cells for such procedures, they are not often used in clinical applications because of the limited supply. Induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells, with their high proliferation and differentiation ability, are now considered a promising alternative. The objectives of this study were to assess the role of iPS cells in tooth tissue engineering. We used real-time polymerase chain reaction to confirm that mouse iPS (miPS) cells can be induced to express both odontogenic and osteogenic gene profiles. We then established a tooth germ model and transplanted the recombinant tooth germ into a mouse subrenal capsule for 4 weeks to reproduce early-tooth organogenesis. After 4 weeks, hematoxylin and eosin staining results showed newly formed bone-like and dental pulp-like areas. Further immunohistochemical staining confirmed that osteopontin was present in the apical part of the tooth-like structure. These results demonstrate that miPS cells have the potential to differentiate into odontogenic cells, confirming that they could be a new source of seed cells for use in tooth tissue engineering.

Links

Publisher Full Text

Authors

Wen Y, Wang F, Zhang W, Li Y, Yu M, Nan X, Chen L, Yue W, Xu X, Pei X

Institution

School of Stomatology, Shandong University, Jinan, PR China.

Source

Tissue engineering. Part A 18:15-16 2012 Aug pg 1677-85

MeSH

Animals
Cell Separation
Cells, Cultured
Embryoid Bodies
Epithelial Cells
Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental
Immunohistochemistry
Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells
Mesenchymal Stromal Cells
Mice
Mice, Inbred C57BL
Odontogenesis
Osteogenesis
Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction
Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction
Tissue Engineering
Tooth
Tooth Germ

Pub Type(s)

Journal Article
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

Language

eng

PubMed ID

22676377