Reconstruction of human hard-palate mucosal epithelium on de-epidermized dermis

Artificial hard-palate mucosa equivalents were reconstructed using keratinocytes derived from normal human hard-palate and de-epidermized dermis. Reconstructed hard-palate mucosal epithelium formed in three-dimensional culture was compared to native hard-palate mucosal epithelium and reconstructed oral buccal mucosal epithelium with regard to keratin expression. Artificial hard-palate mucosal epithelium reconstructed in medium with delipidized serum showed a differentiation pattern similar to that of hard-palate epithelium in vivo. The present study also confirmed that keratinocytes derived from hard-palate mucosa are intrinsically different from those of nonkeratinizing oral surfaces.