Project R-4860

FWO aspirant renewal: Dental stem cells and angiogenesis: on the road to dental pulp regeneration (Research)

Despite today's technological advancements and professional health care, tooth loss remains a major public health issue in the Western world. Since the currently used prostheses are prone to biological and mechanical failure and inorganic pulp replacement materials often lead to pulp necrosis, there is an urgent need for better alternatives. Within the human tooth, several mesenchymal-like stem cell populations can be distinguished, such as dental pulp stem cells, cells from the periodontal ligament, cells from the apical papilla of developing roots and dental follicle stem cells, which may provide an effective strategy for pulp regeneration. Since vascularization is an important issue in tissue engineering, this project will study the angiogenic properties of dental stem cells, i.e. the paracrine angiogenic effects and endothelial differentiation potential, by means of different in vitro and in ovo models of angiogenesis and it will evaluate their use in an in vivo mouse tooth pulp regeneration model. A more detailed knowledge of the angiogenic mechanisms of dental stem cells and their role in pulp regeneration might ultimately lead to the development of better tooth replacement strategies.

01 October 2013 - 30 September 2015