New procedures envisioned for dental pulp regeneration after pulpectomy include cell homing strategy. It involves host endogenous stem cell recruitment and activation. To meet this cell-free approach, we need to design a relevant scaffold to support cell migration from tissues surrounding the dental root canal. A composite membrane made of electrospun poly(lactic acid) nanofibers and electrosprayed polycaprolactone with tannic acid (TA) microparticles which mimics the architecture of the extracellular matrix was first fabricated. After rolling the membrane in the form of a 3D conical scaffold and subsequently coating it with gelatin, it can be directly inserted into the root canal. The porous morphology of the construct was characterized by SEM at different length scales. It was shown that TA was released from the 3D conical scaffold after 2 days in PBS at 37 °C. Biocompatibility studies were first assessed by seeding human dental pulp stem cells (DPSCs) on planar membranes coated or not coated with gelatin to compare the surfaces. After 24 h, the results highlighted that the gelatin-coating increased the membrane biocompatibility and cell viability. Similar DPSC morphology and proliferation on both membrane surfaces were observed. The culture of DPSCs on conical scaffolds showed cell colonization in the whole cone volume, proving that the architecture of the conical scaffold was suitable for cell migration.
Keywords: cell homing; dental pulp regeneration; dental pulp stem cells; electrospinning; tissue engineering.