Exploring the Differentiation Abilities of Hair Follicle and Dental Pulp Stem Cells Into Islet Like Cells

This study aimed to compare the differentiation potential of dental pulp-derived mesenchymal stem cells (DP-MSCs) and hair follicle-derived mesenchymal stem cells (HF-MSCs), which originated from the ectoderm. Dental pulps were separated from the extracted wisdom teeth during dental surgery, and Hair follicles were extracted from the scalp of patients undergoing hair transplantation. We cultivated the cell in cell culture media, supplemented with additional nutrients. After the fourth passage, the homogeneous population of DP-MSCs and HF-MSCs was analyzed for the surface markers (CD73, CD90, and CD105) by fluorescence-activated cell sorting. In vitro, the multi-lineage differentiation potential for both the MSCs was tested with respective induction media such as osteogenic, chondrogenic, adipogenic, and insulin-producing cells. Following the fourth passage, identical fibroblast-like cells were noted in each culture plate. Mesenchymal stem cell marker was expressed in both DP-MSCs and HF-MSCs. Both the DP-MSCs and HF-MSCs exhibited similar differentiation potential toward osteogenic, chondrogenic, and adipogenic differentiation. However, there was a difference in the differentiation potential into IPCs. HF-MSCs showed higher C-peptide and insulin secretion response to glucose, PDX1, and Insulin gene expression compared to DP-MSCs. These findings suggest that although DP-MSCs and HF-MSCs showed similar stemness properties, they differ in their differentiation potential towards insulin-producing cells (IPCs). This is the first report showing the potential of HF-MSCs to generate IPCs, revealing hair follicles as a novel and promising source for autologous stem cell therapy in diabetes. The generated islet organoids can be used for diabetic drug toxicity testing and screening.