It is generally accepted that cementoblasts originate in the process of differentiation of the mesenchymal cells of the dental follicle. Recently, a different hypothesis for the origin of cementoblasts has been proposed. Hertwig's epithelial root sheath cells undergo the epithelial-mesenchymal transformation to differentiate into cementoblasts. To elucidate whether the epithelial-mesenchymal tr...

The etiology of dental pulp stones, one type of extraskeletal calcification disease, remains elusive to date. Calcifying nanoparticles (CNPs), formerly referred to as nanobacteria, were reported to be one etiological factor in a number of extraskeletal calcification diseases. We hypothesized that CNPs are involved in the calcification of the dental pulp tissue, and therefore investigated the li...

The dental follicle is an ectomesenchymal tissue surrounding the developing tooth germ. Human dental follicle cells (hDFCs) have the capacity to commit to differentiation into multiple cell types. Here we investigated the capacity of hDFCs to differentiate into neural cells and the efficiency of a two-step strategy involving floating neurosphere-like bodies for neural differentiation. Undiffere...

Adult stem cells (ASC) have been found in many tissues and are of great therapeutic potential due to their capability of differentiation. However, ASC comprise only a small fraction of the tissues. In order to use ASC for therapeutic purposes, it is important to obtain relatively pure stem cells in large quantities. Current methods for stem cell purification are mainly based on marker-dependent...

Engineering of craniofacial tissues would have a profound impact on various treatment strategies in dentistry. The role of mesenchymal stem cells in the formation of all craniofacial and dental structures has been well demonstrated. Stem cells from various craniofacial structures like dental epithelium, dental follicle, apical papilla, exfoliated deciduous teeth, periodontal ligament and dental...

PURPOSE To describe the features of impacted upper canines and their relationship with adjacent structures through three-dimensional cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) images. MATERIALS AND METHODS Using the CBCT scans of 79 upper impacted canines, we evaluated the following parameters: gender, unilateral/bilateral occurrence, location, presence and degree of root resorption of adjacent tee...

In the developing mammalian tooth, the cranial neural crest derived dental mesenchyme consists of the dental papilla and dental follicle. The dental papilla gives rise to odontoblasts and dental pulp and the dental follicle gives rise to the periodontium, including the osteoblasts that contribute to the alveolar process. The alveolar process is a specialized intramembranous bone that forms the ...