Postnatal periodontal ligament as a novel adult stem cell source for regenerative corneal cell therapy.

ABSTRACT: Corneal opacities are a leading cause of global blindness. They are conventionally treated by the transplantation of donor corneal tissue, which is, restricted by a worldwide donor material shortage and allograft rejection. Autologous adult stem cells with a potential to differentiate into corneal stromal keratocytes (CSKs) could offer a suitable choice of cells for regenerative cell therapy. Postnatal periodontal ligament (PDL) contains a population of adult stem cells, which has a similar embryological origin as CSK, that is cranial neural crest. We harvested PDL cells from young adult teeth extracted because of non-functional or orthodontic reason and differentiated them towards CSK phenotype using a two-step protocol with spheroid formation followed by growth factor and cytokine induct

SUBMITTER: Yam GH 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5980160 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature