A review of the therapeutic potential of dental stem cells as scaffold-free models for tissue engineering application

• Published in: Tissue & cell 2024-02, Vol.86, p.102281-102281, Article 102281
• Main Authors: Abdolahinia, Elaheh Dalir, Golestani, Shayan, Seif, Sepideh, Afra, Narges, Aflatoonian, Khotan, Jalalian, Ali, Valizadeh, Nasrin, Abdollahinia, Elham Dalir
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 0040-8166; 1532-3072
• DOI: 10.1016/j.tice.2023.102281

In the realm of regenerative medicine, tissue engineering has introduced innovative approaches to facilitate tissue regeneration. Specifically, in pulp tissue engineering, both scaffold-based and scaffold-free techniques have been applied. Relevant articles were meticulously chosen from PubMed, Scopus, and Google Scholar databases through a comprehensive search spanning from October 2022 to December 2022. Despite the inherent limitations of scaffolding, including inadequate mechanical strength for hard tissues, insufficient vents for vessel penetration, immunogenicity, and suboptimal reproducibility-especially with natural polymeric scaffolds-scaffold-free tissue engineering has garnered significant attention. This methodology employs three-dimensional (3D) cell aggregates such as spheroids and cell sheets with extracellular matrix, facilitating precise regeneration of target tissues. The choice of technique aside, stem cells play a pivotal role in tissue engineering, with dental stem cells emerging as particularly promising resources. Their pluripotent nature, non-invasive extraction process, and unique properties render them highly suitable for scaffold-free tissue engineering. This study delves into the latest advancements in leveraging dental stem cells and scaffold-free techniques for the regeneration of various tissues. This paper offers a comprehensive summary of recent developments in the utilization of dental stem cells and scaffold-free methods for tissue generation. It explores the potential of these approaches to advance tissue engineering and their effectiveness in therapies aimed at tissue regeneration.