A Novel Strategy to Engineer Pre-Vascularized Full-Length Dental Pulp-like Tissue Constructs
June 29, 2017
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It’s always exciting to learn more about new research that makes it possible for breakthroughs to happen. That was my interview with Dr. Luiz Bertassoni and Ms. Avathamsa Athirasala who developed a process to engineer new blood vessels in teeth, creating better long-term outcomes for patients and clinicians. We will certainly follow the progress of their research and invite them once again on Oasis Discussions to tell us about it. We wish them all the best in their endeavours! Chiraz Guessaier, CDA Oasis Manager |
Highlights
- The requirement for immediate vascularization of engineered dental pulp poses a major hurdle towards successful implementation of pulp regeneration as an effective therapeutic strategy for root canal therapy, especially in adult teeth.
- The authors demonstrated a novel strategy to engineer pre-vascularized, cell-laden hydrogel pulp-like tissue constructs in full-length root canals for dental pulp regeneration. They utilized gelatin methacryloyl (GelMA) hydrogels with tunable physical and mechanical properties to determine the microenvironmental conditions (microstructure, degradation, swelling and elastic modulus) that enhanced viability, spreading and proliferation of encapsulated odontoblast-like cells (OD21), and the formation of endothelial monolayers by endothelial colony forming cells (ECFCs). GelMA hydrogels with higher polymer concentration (15% w/v) and stiffness enhanced OD21 cell viability, spreading and proliferation, as well as endothelial cell spreading and monolayer formation.
- They then fabricated pre-vascularized, full-length, dental pulp-like tissue constructs by dispensing OD21 cell-laden GelMA hydrogel prepolymer in root canals of extracted teeth and fabricating 500µm channels throughout the root canals. ECFCs seeded into the microchannels successfully formed monolayers and underwent angiogenic sprouting within 7 days in culture.
- In summary, the proposed approach is a simple and effective strategy for engineering of pre-vascularized dental pulp constructs offering potentially beneficial translational outcomes.
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- Luiz Bertassoni, D.D.S., Ph.D., assistant professor of restorative dentistry in the OHSU School of Dentistry has helped develop a process to engineer artificial blood vessels which are used to help regenerate teeth, possibly changing the way root canal treatments will be done in the future. (OHSU/Kristyna Wentz-Graff)
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- Luiz Bertassoni, D.D.S., Ph.D., assistant professor of restorative dentistry in the OHSU School of Dentistry has helped develop a process to engineer artificial blood vessels which are used to help regenerate teeth, possibly changing the way root canal treatments will be done in the future. (OHSU/Kristyna Wentz-Graff)
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- Artificial blood vessels are shown here in a hydrogel which forms the cell laden scaffold used in a new root canal process. Luiz Bertassoni, D.D.S., Ph.D., assistant professor of restorative dentistry in the OHSU School of Dentistry has helped develop a process to engineer artificial blood vessels which are used to help regenerate teeth, possibly changing the way root canal treatments will be done in the future. (OHSU/Kristyna Wentz-Graff)
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- Representative images of pre-vascularized pulp-like tissue construct show cross-sectional views of a fabricated microchannel. (Image courtesy of Scientific Reports)
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- After seven days in culture, cell laden dental pulp-like tissue proliferated near the tooth walls and artificial blood vessels formed within the tooth. (Image courtesy of Scientific Reports)
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- Luiz Bertassoni, D.D.S., Ph.D. holds one of the bovine teeth used to create a new process to treat root canals. Artificial blood vessels are engineered which are used to help regenerate teeth, possibly changing the way root canal treatments will be done in the future. (OHSU/Kristyna Wentz-Graff)