Dental Pulp Mesenchymal Stem Cells as a Treatment for Periodontal Disease in Older Adults
Beatriz Hernández-Monjaraz, Edelmiro Santiago‐Osorio, Edgar Ledesma-Martínez, Itzen Aguíñiga-Sánchez, Norma Angélica Sosa-Hernández, Vı́ctor Manuel Mendoza-Núñez
Abstract
Periodontal disease (PD) is one of the main causes of tooth loss and is related to oxidative stress and chronic inflammation. Although different treatments have been proposed in the past, the vast majority do not regenerate lost tissues. In this sense, the use of dental pulp mesenchymal stem cells (DPMSCs) seems to be an alternative for the regeneration of periodontal bone tissue. A quasi-experimental study was conducted in a sample of 22 adults between 55 and 64 years of age with PD, without uncontrolled systemic chronic diseases. Two groups were formed randomly: (i) experimental group (EG) <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" id="M1"><mml:mi>n</mml:mi><mml:mo>=</mml:mo><mml:mn>11</mml:mn></mml:math>, with a treatment based on DPMSCs; and a (ii) control group (CG) <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" id="M2"><mml:mi>n</mml:mi><mml:mo>=</mml:mo><mml:mn>11</mml:mn></mml:math>, without a treatment of DPMSCs. Every participant underwent clinical and radiological evaluations and measurement of bone mineral density (BMD) by tomography. Saliva samples were taken as well, to determine the total concentration of antioxidants, superoxide dismutase (SOD), lipoperoxides, and interleukins (IL), before and 6 months after treatment. All subjects underwent curettage and periodontal surgery, the EG had a collagen scaffold treated with DPMSCs, while the CG only had the collagen scaffold placed. The EG with DPMSCs showed an increase in the BMD of the alveolar bone with a borderline statistical significance (baseline <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" id="M3"><mml:mn>638.82</mml:mn><mml:mo>±</mml:mo><mml:mn>181.7</mml:mn></mml:math> vs. posttreatment <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" id="M4"><mml:mn>781.26</mml:mn><mml:mo>±</mml:mo><mml:mn>162.2</mml:mn></mml:math> HU, <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" id="M5"><mml:mi>p</mml:mi><mml:mo>=</mml:mo><mml:mn>0.09</mml:mn></mml:math>). Regarding oxidative stress and inflammation markers, salivary SOD levels were significantly higher in EG (baseline <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" id="M6"><mml:mn>1.49</mml:mn><mml:mo>±</mml:mo><mml:mn>0.96</mml:mn></mml:math> vs. <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" id="M7"><mml:mn>2.14</mml:mn><mml:mo>±</mml:mo><mml:mn>1.12</mml:mn><mml:mtext> </mml:mtext><mml:mtext>U</mml:mtext><mml:mo>/</mml:mo><mml:mtext>L</mml:mtext></mml:math> posttreatment, <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" id="M8"><mml:mi>p</mml:mi><mml:mo><</mml:mo><mml:mn>0.05</mml:mn></mml:math>) meanwhile IL1 β levels had a decrease (baseline <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" id="M9"><mml:mn>1001.91</mml:mn><mml:mo>±</mml:mo><mml:mn>675.5</mml:mn></mml:math> vs. posttreatment <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" id="M10"><mml:mn>722.3</mml:mn><mml:mo>±</mml:mo><mml:mn>349.4</mml:mn><mml:mtext> </mml:mtext><mml:mtext>pg</mml:mtext><mml:mo>/</mml:mo><mml:mtext>ml</mml:mtext></mml:math>, <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" id="M11"><mml:mi>p</mml:mi><mml:mo><</mml:mo><mml:mn>0.05</mml:mn></mml:math>). Our findings suggest that a DPMSCs treatment based on DPMSCs has both an effect on bone regeneration linked to an increased SOD and decreased levels of IL1 β in aging subjects with PD.