Dental pulp stem cells: neurogenic differentiation potential and ferumoxide nanoparticle labelling

Dental pulp stem cells (DPSC), mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) from the tooth, share phenotypical and multilineage characteristics with bone marrow derived MSCs (BMMSCs). Since DPSCs are much easier to harvest in comparison to BMMSCs they are considered as a useful alternative MSC source in stem cell research. As MSCs retain some plasticity, the neural differentiation potential of DPSCs will be evaluated. DPSCs will be labelled with the commercially available ferumoxide Endorem® to allow visualization with MRI following engraftment. This study shows expression of NeuN in neurogenic differentiated DPSCs. Future studies should include quantitative and electrophysiological experiments. This study also shows that the optimal concentration for labelling DPSCs is 0,75µg/ml PLL with 15µg/ml Endorem®. The influence of Endorem® labelling on cellular processes of DPSCs needs to be determined before these cells can be considered as a clinical applicable intracellular contrast agent for MRI analysi