Dental pulp stem cells from human teeth with deep caries displayed an enhanced angiogenesis potential in vitro

BACKGROUND/PURPOSE: Dental pulp stem cells can be isolated from human teeth with deep caries (cDPSCs), but their biological characteristics are still unclear. The aim of this study was to investigate the angiogenic potential of cDPSCs and compare them to dental pulp stem cells from human normal teeth (nDPSCs). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Cells were isolated from human pulp tissue of normal and infected teeth with deep caries. Basic mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) characterization was conducted. Colony forming units and proliferation ability were evaluated in nDPSCs and cDPSCs. Expression of VEGF in both tissues and cells was examined by immunohistochemical staining. After stimulating nDPSCs and cDPSCs with an angiogenic medium, angiogenic markers were evaluated by qRT-PCR and western blotting. Finally, tube formation assays were used to evaluate the in vitro angiogenesis potential of both cell populations. RESULTS: Both nDPSCs and cDPSCs possessed typical MSC characteristics. cDPSCs had enhanced colony formation and proliferation capacities than nDPSCs did. The expression of VEGF was higher in pulp tissue from teeth with deep caries and cDPSCs than in normal tissue and nDPSCs. When both cell types were grown in vitro under angiogenic conditions, cDPSCs expressed a higher level of angiogenic markers and showed a stronger angiogenesis potential than nDPSCs did. CONCLUSION: cDPSCs maintained MSC traits and presented a higher angiogenesis potential than nDPSCs.