An essential aspect of tooth tissue engineering is the identification of suitable scaffolding materials to support cell growth and tissue regeneration. Treated dentin matrix (TDM) from a rat has recently been shown to be a suitable scaffold for rat dentin regeneration. However, due to species-specific differences, it remains unclear whether a similar fabrication method can be extended to human TDM and human dentin regeneration. Therefore, this present study explored the biological response to a human TDM (hTDM) created using a modified dentin treatment method. Various biological characteristics, including cell proliferation, cell migration, cell viability, and cytotoxity were investigated. To assess the inductive capacity of hTDM, dental follicle cells (DFCs) were combined with hTDM and were implanted in vivo for 8 weeks in a mouse model. The resulting grafts were studied histologically. The results showed hTDM released dentinogenic factors, indicating that hTDM could play a sustained role in odontogenesis. DFC attachment, growth, viability, and cytotoxicity on the surface of hTDM showed a notable improvement over those on calcium phosphate controls. Most importantly, in vivo hTDM induced and supported regeneration of complete dentin tissues, which expressed dentin markers DSP and DMP-1. As cells in and around the regenerated dentin were positive for human mitochondria, implanted DFCs and hTDM were responsible for the regenerated dentin tissues. In conclusion, hTDM is indicated as an ideal biomaterial for human dentin regeneration.

Biomaterials. 2011 Jul;32(20):4525-38.

Human treated dentin matrix as a natural scaffold for complete human dentin tissue regeneration.

Li R, Guo W, Yang B, Guo L, Sheng L, Chen G, Li Y, Zou Q, Xie D, An X, Chen Y, Tian W.