Dens invaginatus is a developmental anomaly, caused by deepening of the enamel organ into the dental papilla before calcification of the dental tissues. Teeth with dens invagination are susceptible to early caries and pulp necrosis within a few years of eruption or even before root end closure. This article reports two immature maxillary central incisors with type I and III dens invaginatus whi...

BACKGROUND Dental pulp is used for PCR-based detection of DNA derived from host and bacteremic microorganims. Current protocols require odontology expertise for proper recovery of the dental pulp. Dental pulp specimen exposed to laboratory environment yields contaminants detected using universal 16S rDNA-based detection of bacteria. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS We developed a new protocol b...

Msh homeobox 1 (MSX1) encodes a transcription factor implicated in embryonic development of limbs and craniofacial tissues including bone and teeth. Although MSX1 regulates osteoblast differentiation in the cranial bone of young animal, little is known about the contribution of MSX1 to the osteogenic potential of human cells. In the present study, we investigate the role of MSX1 in osteogenic d...

Stem cells are characterized by the ability to differentiate and to self-renew. Stem cells derived from human dental pulp have been shown to differentiate into osteoblasts serving as a potential source of autologous bone produced in vitro. The purpose of the present study was to isolate mesenchymal stem cells from dental pulp. Dental pulp was gently extracted from 27 intact human permanent thir...

trauma to primary teeth can lead to devastating sequels in development of permanent successors. the disturbance may range from enamel hypoplasia and/or hypo-calcification to arrest of dental bud development. crown dilaceration of permanent teeth is one of the consequences of trauma to deciduous teeth mainly due to intrusion or avulsion. this report presents a mandibular central incisor with dil...

AIM To evaluate catalase (CAT, EC 1.11.1.6) activity in healthy and inflamed dental pulp of young patient's teeth and to investigate if an active defense system oxidizing agents is present as a response to bacterial invasion. MATERIALS AND METHODS Twenty young patients between 15 and 25 ages, who were diagnosed to be healthy, were the source of the pulp tissue. The situation of the dental pul...

Traditional protocols involve the cleaning of the pulp chamber and root canals, the removal of bacteria and of the smear layer, and ultimately to the sealing of endodontic materials filling the pulp, and root lumen. Disinfection combined with mechanical enlargement allows occluding the lumen of the dental pulp with a central master cone, and lateral condensation using a series of small accessor...

Human dental pulp stem cells (hDPSCs) are mesenchymal stem cells that have been successfully used in human bone tissue engineering. To establish whether these cells can lead to a bone tissue ready to be grafted, we checked DPSCs for their osteogenic and angiogenic differentiation capabilities with the specific aim of obtaining a new tool for bone transplantation. Therefore, hDPSCs were specific...