title: Differentiation of dermal multipotent cells into odontogenic lineage induced by embryonic and neonatal tooth germ cell-conditioned medium.
abstract: Stem cell-based therapy represents a novel and more advantageous modality of treatment for tooth defect or loss. However, this strategy is challenged in the circumstances where tooth-derived stem cells are not readily accessible. In present study we sought to explore the possibility of utilizing dermal multipotent cells (DMCs) easily available from skin tissue for odontogenic induction. Using the limiting dilution technique, colony-forming cell population was isolated and characterized by proliferative activity and multilineage differentiation potential. By exposure to conditioned medium of embryonic and neonatal tooth germ cells in culture, the proliferation and mineralization activity of DMCs was elevated, while the embryonic tooth germ cell-conditioned medium (ETGC-CM) produced more significant effects. Meanwhile, ETGC-CM-treated DMCs phenocopied the odontoblasts in vitro as indicated by specific lineage markers. Following in vivo transplantation as cell pellet, ETGC-CM-treated DMCs were capable of producing blocks of mineralized tissues, which resembled those of dental pulp stem cell (DPSC) explants in the same subcutaneous pockets environment. These observations suggest that although more sufficient and continuous inductive microenvironment may be needed for undifferentiated DMCs to perform as odontoblasts, ETGC-CM-treated DMCs indeed acquire properties as those of DPSCs. Our work highlights the potential utility of DMCs as an alternative candidate cell source in hopes of developing more practical strategy of tooth regeneration research and offering promising opportunities for therapeutic approach.
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthodontics, Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Na
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Huo
authors.forename: Liang
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Tang
authors.forename: Zhenhua
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Hong
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Qian
authors.forename: Yinxiong
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Chun
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Han
authors.forename: Zexu
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Gu
authors.forename: Yinzhong
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Duan
authors.forename: Yan
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Jin
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000831:Animals, Newborn; D002454:Cell Differentiation / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D019070:Cell Lineage / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D018920:Coculture Techniques; D017077:Culture Media, Conditioned / Q000378:metabolism / Q000494:pharmacology*; D020405:Dermis / Q000166:cytology* / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D053595:Embryonic Stem Cells / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D008819:Mice, Nude; D039902:Multipotent Stem Cells / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D009804:Odontoblasts / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D009805:Odontogenesis / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D023822:Tissue Engineering / Q000379:methods; D014083:Tooth Germ / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism; D014183:Transplantation, Heterologous
chemical_list: D017077:Culture Media, Conditioned