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Strategies for Tracking the Origin and Fate of Odontoblasts and Pulp Cell Progenitors

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Abstract

Odontoblasts are exclusively dentin-producing cells that are morphologically and functionally distinct from osteoblasts secreting the bone matrix. Although much has been learned about the cellular and molecular mechanisms that regulate the progression of hematopoietic population and osteoprogenitor cells into fully differentiated cell types, not much is known about the regulatory mechanisms involved in the differentiation program of odontoblasts. This has been due at least in part to difficulties in obtaining homogenous populations of progenitor cells for molecular analysis and the lack of suitable markers for identifying the intermediate stages of odontoblast differentiation.

In addition odontoblasts are present throughout the life of the tooth. The aim of pulp therapy is to maintain the vitality of injured dental pulp and establish an environment that enables the remaining pulp to regenerate the dental-pulp complex. Despite recent advances in research on the regenerative potential of dental pulp complex, the origin/identity of the progenitor cells and signaling pathways involved in reparative dentinogenesis remains elusive.

In this section, we review current advances in methods that have allowed further understanding of the cellular and molecular mechanisms involved in physiological and reparative dentinogenesis as well as stem cell population in the pulp.

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Acknowledgments

I would like to thank Drs. Barut, Balic, Frozoni, and Sagomonyants for their hard work in generating the data reported here. I also would like to thank all the individuals who provided reagents, valuable input, and technical assistance in various aspects of these studies including Drs. Rowe and Kalajzic and Mrs. Rodgers for critical review of the manuscript. This work was supported by a grant from National Institutes of Health (NIDCR) to MM (DE016689).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Pediatric Dentistry, School of Dental Medicine, University of Connecticut Health Center, 263 Farmington Ave, Farmington, CT, 06030-4081, USA

    Mina Mina DMD, MSD, PhD

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  1. Mina Mina DMD, MSD, PhD
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Correspondence to Mina Mina DMD, MSD, PhD .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Oral Biology, Institut National de la Santé et de la, Recherche Médicale, Université Paris Descartes, Paris, Paris, France

    Michel Goldberg

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Mina, M. (2014). Strategies for Tracking the Origin and Fate of Odontoblasts and Pulp Cell Progenitors. In: Goldberg, M. (eds) The Dental Pulp. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-55160-4_4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-55160-4_4

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