[In vitro growth of periodontal ligament fibroblasts between bone and root slices]

In a first experiment the proliferation and growth kinetics of periodontal ligament fibroblast monolayers generated from human healthy (HPDL) and diseased (DPDL) periodontia were compared. In a second experimental series a periodontal ligament-like space was developed by laying a root slice inside a bony ring slice on the bottom of a tissue culture petri dish and leaving a space of about 0.5 mm between both structures. HPDL cells showed a higher proliferation rate than DPDL cells. Growing into the space between the slices, the PDL cells built up a matrix which was composed of cells and fibrils. HPDL cells built up the matrix more rapidly than DPDL cells.