Poly(amino acid)-based fibrous scaffolds modified with surface-pendant peptides for cartilage tissue engineering.

In this study, fibrous scaffolds based on poly(γ-benzyl-l-glutamate) (PBLG) were investigated in terms of the chondrogenic differentiation potential of human tooth germ stem cells (HTGSCs). Through the solution-assisted bonding of the fibres, fully connected scaffolds with pore sizes in the range 20-400 µm were prepared. Biomimetic modification of the PBLG scaffolds was achieved by a two-step reaction procedure: first, aminolysis of the PBLG fibres' surface layers was performed, which resulted in an increase in the hydrophilicity of the fibrous scaffolds after the introduction of N5 -hydroxyethyl-l-glutamine units; and second, modification with the short peptide sequence azidopentanoyl-GGGRGDSGGGY-NH2 , using the 'click' reaction on the previously modified scaffold with 2-propynyl side-chains, was performed. Radio-assay of the 125 I-labelled peptide was used to evaluate the RGD density in the fibrous scaffolds (which varied in the range 10-3 -10 pm/cm2 ). All the PBLG scaffolds, especially with density 90 ± 20 fm/cm2 and 200 ± 100 fm/cm2 RGD, were found to be potentially suitable for growth and chondrogenic differentiation of HTGSCs. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Biocompatibility of Accelerated Mineral Trioxide Aggregate on Stem Cells Derived from Human Dental Pulp.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of several additives on the setting time and cytotoxicity of accelerated-set mineral trioxide aggregate (MTA) on stem cells of human dental pulp. ProRoot white MTA (WMTA) (Dentsply Tulsa Dental, Johnson City, TN) was mixed with various additives including distilled water, 2.5% disodium hydrogen phosphate (Na2HPO4) (Merck, Darmstadt, Germany), K-Y Jelly (Johnson & Johnson, Markham, ON, Canada), and 5% and 10% calcium chloride (CaCl2) (Merck). The setting times were evaluated using a Vicat apparatus (Alsa Lab, Istanbul, Turkey). Human dental pulp stem cells were isolated and seeded into 48-well plates at 2 × 10(3) cells per well and incubated with MTA samples for 24 hours, 3 days, and 7 days. Cell viability was evaluated using the 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-5-(3-carboxymethoxyphenyl)-2-(4-sulfophenyl)-2H-tetrazolium assay. MTA mixed with 10% CaCl2 showed the lowest setting time (P < .05). According to the 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-5-(3-carboxymethoxyphenyl)-2-(4-sulfophenyl)-2H-tetrazolium results on the 1st, 3rd, and 7th days, a statistically significant difference was found (P < .05) between MTA groups and the control group. MTA mixed with K-Y Jelly in all groups showed the lowest cell viability at all time points (P < .05). The cell viability of MTA mixed with distilled water, 5% CaCl2, 10% CaCl2, and Na2HPO4 increased significantly through time (P < .05). This in vitro study found MTA mixed with 5% and 10% CaCl2 and Na2HPO4 is biocompatible with dental pulp stem cells in terms of cell viability. Further in vitro and in vivo investigations are required to prove the clinical applications of MTA mixed with various additives.