Abstract

Dental pulp stem cells are mesenchymal stem cells derived from the dental pulp tissue of permanent or deciduous teeth. Espe- cially, stem cells from human exfoliated deciduous teeth (SHED) have an enhanced capacity than adult pulp stem cells counterpart for self-renewal (proliferation) and multilineage differentiation, being able to generate dentin/pulp-like complexes, neural cells, skin cells, chondrocytes, and osteogenic cells, among others. Their accessibility from routine dental procedures and lack of ethical concerns make SHED an attractive stem cell source for regenerative therapy. This paper reviews current preclinical and clinical research on the tissue regenerative potential of SHED-based therapies. In preclinical animal models and clinical trials, SHED transplantation have shown promise for bone regeneration and repair, neural regeneration, myocardial infarction treatment, inflam- matory bowel disease, renal injury, liver fibrosis, diabetes mellitus, erectile dysfunction, skin wounds, muscle injury, and other con- ditions. Early-phase human trials further indicate the feasibility, safety, and efficacy of SHED based cell therapy for various disease introduced before. However, therapeutic effects from SHED injections vary greatly depending on cell source, delivery method, dose, and disease model or condition. Additional translational medicine studies for elucidating key therapeutic mechanisms of SHED and methodological advances in cell processing and delivery are needed to improve consistency. If the remaining challenges are addressed through rigorous research, SHED cell therapy may become versatile clinical (dental) materials for tissue repair and regeneration across a wide range of organs and disease states.