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Project

Reinnervation and revascularization of dentin-pulp-like tissue in an in vivo model of pulp regeneration using a biodegradable scaffold and human dental pulp stem cells (R-6619)

Various conditions such as dental caries, periodontitis, traumatic injury or various pathological syndromes can lead to loss or absence of a tooth. Tooth replacement is not only very important for aesthetic reasons but also for functional purposes. Since currently used prostheses are prone to biological and mechanical failure and inorganic pulp replacement materials often lead to pulp necrosis, there is an urgent need for better alternatives. Dental tissue engineering is a new promising therapeutic approach that aims at replacing missing dental pulp tissue with a bioengineered one. The main principle of dental tissue engineering is using dental stem cells, seeded onto a biocompatible scaffold, thereby providing the proper stimuli to create a biocomplex being the dental pulp tissue. Since both innervation and vascularization are an important aspect of dental tissue engineering, we attempt to improve reinnervation and revascularization of a bioengineered dentin-pulp tissue by using a combination of dental pulp stem cells and dental pulp stem cells differentiated toward Schwann cells loaded in tooth root segments. Therefore we will investigate, if both cell populations secrete neurotrophic and angiogenic factors that are involved in the attraction of sensory nerves and blood vessels both in in vitro and in vivo experiments. These results will further elucidate the potential role of stem cells in the innervation and vascularization of a tissue-engineered dentin pulp tissue.
Date:1 Jan 2016 →  31 Dec 2019
Keywords:STEM CELLS
Disciplines:Morphological sciences