Enamel Matrix Derivative Enhances the Odontoblastic Differentiation of Dental Pulp Stem Cells via Activating MAPK Signaling Pathways

Beidi Zhang; Min Xiao; Xiaogang Cheng; Yu Bai; Hanze Chen; Qing Yu; Lihong Qiu

doi:10.1155/2022/2236250

Enamel Matrix Derivative Enhances the Odontoblastic Differentiation of Dental Pulp Stem Cells via Activating MAPK Signaling Pathways

Stem Cells Int. 2022 Apr 28:2022:2236250. doi: 10.1155/2022/2236250. eCollection 2022.

Authors

Beidi Zhang^{1

2}, Min Xiao³, Xiaogang Cheng³, Yu Bai³, Hanze Chen⁴, Qing Yu³, Lihong Qiu¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Endodontics, School and Hospital of Stomatology, China Medical University, Liaoning Provincial Key Laboratory of Oral Diseases, Shenyang, China.
² Department of Stomatology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, Jiangsu 215000, China.
³ State Key Laboratory of Military Stomatology & National Clinical Research Center for Oral Diseases & Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Stomatology, Department of Operative Dentistry and Endodontics, School of Stomatology, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, China.
⁴ Department of Neurology, Neuroscience Center, Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China.

Abstract

The odontoblastic differentiation of dental pulp stem cells (DPSCs) contributes to pulp-dentin regeneration. Enamel matrix derivative (EMD) is considered to be a critical epithelial signal to induce cell differentiation during odontogenesis and has been widely applied to clinical periodontal tissue regeneration. The purpose of this study was to explore the effect of EMD on DPSCs proliferation and odontoblastic differentiation, as well as the underlying mechanisms. We conducted in vitro and in vivo researches to get a comprehensive understanding of EMD. In vitro phase: cell proliferation was assessed by a cell counting kit-8 (CCK-8) assay; then, alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity and staining, alizarin red staining, real-time RT-PCR, and western blot analysis were conducted to determine the odontoblastic potential and involvement of MAPK signaling pathways. In vivo phase: after ensuring the biocompatibility of VitroGel 3D-RGD via scanning electron microscopy (SEM), the hydrogel mixture was subcutaneously injected into nude mice followed by histological and immunohistochemical analyses. The results revealed that EMD did not interfere with DPSCs proliferation but promoted the odontoblastic differentiation of DPSCs in vitro and in vivo. Furthermore, blocking the MAPK pathways suppressed the EMD-enhanced differentiation of DPSCs. Finally, VitroGel 3D-RGD could well support the proliferation, differentiation, and regeneration of DPSCs. Overall, this study demonstrates that EMD enhances the odontoblastic differentiation of DPSCs through triggering MAPK signaling pathways. The findings provide a new insight into the mechanism by which EMD affects DPSCs differentiation and proposes EMD as a promising candidate for future stem cell therapy in endodontics.