Department of Highly Advanced Stomatology, Graduate School of Dentistry, Kanagawa Dental University, Yokohama City, Kanagawa, Japan.
Adv Exp Med Biol. 2019;1122:169-186. doi: 10.1007/978-3-030-11093-2_10.
Teeth are exposed to hundreds of oral bacteria and also challenged by the mastication forces; because teeth are situated in oral cavity, the entrance of the digestive tract, and penetrates through the oral epithelium. The periodontal ligament is a noncalcified tissue that possesses abundant blood vessels, which exist between tooth root and alveolar bone. The ligament is thought to play an important role in absorbing the impact of mastication, in the maintenance of periodontal homeostasis, and in periodontal wound healing. We succeeded in isolating mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), so-called periodontal stem cells (PDLSCs), with self-renewability and multipotency from the periodontal ligament. We also demonstrated that PDLSCs share some cell surface markers with pericytes and that PDLSCs distribute themselves to stay with the endothelial cell networks and that PDLSCs maintain the endothelial cell networks when added to endothelial cell network formation systems. Pericytes are located in the proximity of microvascular endothelial cells and thought to stabilize and supply nutrients to blood vessels. Recently, it was also reported that pericytes possess multipotency and can be the source of tissue stem cells and/or progenitor cells. This review explores the distinctive features of the periodontal ligament tissue and PDLSCs as well as the puzzling similarities between PDLSCs and pericytes.
牙齿暴露于数百种口腔细菌之中，同时还受到咀嚼力的挑战；由于牙齿位于口腔内，即消化道的入口处，并穿透口腔上皮。牙周韧带是一种无钙化组织，富含血管，存在于牙根和牙槽骨之间。该韧带被认为在吸收咀嚼冲击、维持牙周稳态和牙周伤口愈合方面发挥着重要作用。我们成功地从牙周韧带中分离出具有自我更新能力和多能性的间充质干细胞（MSCs），即牙周干细胞（PDLSCs）。我们还证明，PDLSCs 与周细胞具有一些表面标记物，并且 PDLSCs 分布在与内皮细胞网络保持一致的位置，并且当添加到内皮细胞网络形成系统时，PDLSCs 可以维持内皮细胞网络。周细胞位于微血管内皮细胞附近，被认为可以稳定和为血管提供营养。最近，也有报道称周细胞具有多能性，可以成为组织干细胞和/或祖细胞的来源。本综述探讨了牙周韧带组织和 PDLSCs 的独特特征，以及 PDLSCs 与周细胞之间令人困惑的相似之处。
