Isolation and characterization of stem cells from human exfoliated deciduous teeth

SHEDs have been shown to have a higher rate of proliferation and raise in cell population doublings when compared to stem cells from permanent teeth. Hence, using them in tissue engineering may be advantageous over stem cells from adult human teeth. Stem cells were removed from pulpal tissues of thirty primary teeth undergoing extraction under six to fourteen year of age. The tissues were incubated after centrifuging and adding DMEM-KO following the addition of a 2 mg/ml collagenase blend for examination of plates in search of cell attachment and growth. Flow cytometric analysis showed successful isolation of SHEDs using fluoresce inisothiocyanate (FITC)-conjugated CD-34, CD-105, and PE (R-phycoerythrin)-conjugated CD-45, CD-90, CD-73, and HLA-DR antibodies. The surface antigens CD-73, CD-90 and CD-105 which are known to be present in mesenchymal lineages were positively expressed in SHEDs according to flow cytometry analysis, whereas CD-34, CD-45, and HLA-DR were not.