Drug Repurposing for Tooth Regeneration: The Promising Premises

Area of Science:

• Dental research
• Pharmacology
• Regenerative medicine

Background:

• Drug repurposing is an efficient strategy to discover new therapeutic applications for existing drugs, reducing costs and development time.
• In dentistry, drug repurposing research targets dentin repair and mitigating bone loss in apical periodontitis.
• Metformin (anti-diabetic) exhibits pro-osteogenic effects, while aspirin (anti-inflammatory, anticoagulant) influences dental pulp cell differentiation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore the potential of repurposed drugs for dental applications, focusing on bone regeneration and pulp cell modulation.
• To investigate the role of glycogen synthase kinase-3 inhibitors in activating the Wnt/β-catenin pathway for dental caries treatment.
• To highlight promising drug candidates for future preclinical and clinical evaluation in dentistry.

Main Methods:

• Review of existing literature on drug repurposing in dentistry.
• Analysis of studies on metformin and aspirin concerning their effects on bone and dental pulp cells.
• Examination of the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway's role in mesenchymal stem cells and its relevance to dental caries.

Main Results:

• Metformin demonstrates pro-osteogenic properties beneficial for bone repair.
• Aspirin modulates dental pulp cell differentiation, suggesting therapeutic potential.
• Glycogen synthase kinase-3 inhibitors show potential in activating signaling pathways relevant to treating dental caries.

Conclusions:

• Repurposed drugs like metformin and aspirin present novel therapeutic avenues in dentistry.
• Targeting specific cellular pathways, such as Wnt/β-catenin, may lead to pharmacological treatments for dental caries.
• Further preclinical and clinical studies are essential to validate these findings for routine dental practice.