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Review
. 2021 May;27(5):501-511.
doi: 10.1016/j.molmed.2021.02.005. Epub 2021 Mar 26.

Tooth Repair and Regeneration: Potential of Dental Stem Cells

Weibo Zhang  1 , Pamela C Yelick  2
Affiliations
Review

Tooth Repair and Regeneration: Potential of Dental Stem Cells

Weibo Zhang et al. Trends Mol Med. 2021 May.

Abstract

Tooth defects are an extremely common health condition that affects millions of individuals. Currently used dental repair treatments include fillings for caries, endodontic treatment for pulp necrosis, and dental implants to replace missing teeth, all of which rely on the use of synthetic materials. By contrast, the fields of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine and dentistry (TERMD) use biologically based therapeutic strategies for vital tissue regeneration, and thus have the potential to regenerate living tissues. Methods to create bioengineered replacement teeth benefit from a detailed understanding of the molecular signaling networks regulating natural tooth development. We discuss how key signaling pathways regulating natural tooth development are being exploited for applications in TERMD approaches for vital tooth regeneration.

Keywords: dental epithelial–mesenchymal cell–cell interactions; dental stem cells; regenerative medicine and dentistry; spatiotemporal control; tissue engineering; tooth regeneration; tooth repair.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of Interests The authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Figure 1:
Figure 1:. Schematic of immature tooth bud (left) and adult tooth (right).
The Enamel Organ (EO) gives rise to tooth enamel, while the Pulp Organ (PO) gives rise to all of the remaining dental tissues including dentin, dental pulp, cementum and periodontal ligament tissues.
Figure 2:
Figure 2:. Methods for whole tooth regeneration.
A) Cells harvested from embryonic Enamel Organ (EO) and Pulp Organ (PO) tissues are recombined in a collagen gel drop and cultured in vitro. The reconstituted embryonic tooth germ is then transplanted and grown in the jawbone of an adult host animal. B) Cells harvested from postnatal EO and PO tooth buds seeded onto a decellularized tooth bud ECM (dTB-ECM) scaffold and transplanted into the jawbone of an adult host animal.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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