title: Evaluation of a Commercially Available Hyaluronic Acid Hydrogel (Restylane) as Injectable Scaffold for Dental Pulp Regeneration: An In Vitro Evaluation.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Regenerative endodontic procedures (REPs) are viable alternatives for treating immature teeth, yet these procedures do not predictably lead to pulp-dentin regeneration. A true bioengineering approach for dental pulp regeneration requires the incorporation of a scaffold conducive with the regeneration of the pulp-dentin complex. Several materials have been proposed as scaffolds for REPs; nonetheless, the majority are not eligible for immediate clinical chairside use. Thus, the aim of this study was to evaluate Restylane, a Food and Drug Administration-approved hyaluronic acid-based gel, as possible scaffold for REPs.
  
  
  METHODS
  Stem cells of the apical papilla (SCAP) were cultured either alone or in mixtures with either Restylane or Matrigel scaffolds. Groups were cultured in basal culture medium for 6, 24, and 72 hours, and cell viability was assessed. For the mineralizing differentiation experiments, groups were cultured in differentiation medium either for 7 days and processed for alkaline phosphatase activity or for 14 days and processed for gene expression by using quantitative reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction. SCAP in basal medium served as control.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Cell encapsulation in either Restylane or Matrigel demonstrated reduced cell viability compared with control. Nonetheless, cell viability significantly increased in the Restylane group in the course of 3 days, whereas it decreased significantly in the Matrigel group. Restylane promoted significantly greater alkaline phosphatase activity and upregulation of dentin sialophosphoprotein, dentin matrix acidic phosphoprotein-1, and matrix extracellular phosphoglycoprotein, compared with control.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  A Food and Drug Administration-approved hyaluronic acid-based injectable gel promoted SCAP survival, mineralization, and differentiation into an odontoblastic phenotype and may be a promising scaffold material for REPs.
authors.affiliation: Department of Endodontics, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington. Electronic address: vanessa.chrepa@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Vanessa
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Chrepa
authors.affiliation: Department of Endodontics, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, Texas; Department of Endodontics, Faculty of Dentistry, King Abdulaziz University at Jeddah, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: Obadah
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Austah
authors.affiliation: Department of Endodontics, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, Texas.
authors.forename: Anibal
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Diogenes
mesh_terms: D002460:Cell Line; D003771:Dental Papilla / Q000166:cytology / Q000502:physiology; D003782:Dental Pulp / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D006820:Hyaluronic Acid / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D012038:Regeneration / Q000187:drug effects*; D013234:Stem Cells / Q000502:physiology; D054457:Tissue Scaffolds
chemical_list: D006820:Hyaluronic Acid; C445361:Restylane
keywords: Dental pulp regeneration; FDA approved; Restylane; hyaluronic acid-based gel; regenerative endodontics; scaffolds