Histologic and proteomic profile of two methods to decellularize human dental pulp tissue

Abstract

Objective: The present study compared the structural and proteomic architecture of extracellular matrices (ECM) of decellularized human dental pulp using two previously described protocols.

Design: Pulp tissue from 150 molars was extracted and three treatments took place, based on the Matoug-Elwerfelli Group (MG) and the Song Group (SG) protocols and an untreated pulp group (CG), to examine histoarchitecture and the effectiveness of the decellularization process, using histological analysis (n = 12) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) (n = 3). Protein extraction took place using 100 mg dry weight of pulp, in triplicates for each group, and the shotgun proteome analysis was performed by nanoUPLC-MS^E. Proteins were identified using the revised human UNIPROT database attached to the PLGS search engine.

Results: Histological analysis and SEM demonstrated that ECM in MG was more preserved. Proteome analysis showed that the decellularized process in MG maintained approximately 69.56% of proteins identified in untreated pulp tissue while SG maintained 28.26%.

Conclusions: ECM appears to be suitable as a potential biological scaffold for pulp revascularization and regeneration procedures, especially those processed according to the Matoug-Elwerfelli protocol. This finding can collaborate to enhance clinical solutions for young permanent teeth that have suffered necrosis.

Keywords: Decellularization dental pulp protocols; Decellularized extracellular matrix; Guided tissue regeneration; Proteomics; Tissue scaffolds.