Recent Approaches to Enhance Osteogenesis of Dental Pulp Stem Cells on Electrospun Scaffolds

Abstract

Critical-sized bone defects are a challenging issue during bone regeneration. Bone tissue engineering is aimed to repair such defects using biomimicking scaffolds and stem cells. Electrospinning allows the fabrication of biocompatible, biodegradable, and strengthened scaffolds for bone regeneration. Natural and synthetic polymers, alone or in combination, have been employed to fabricate scaffolds with appropriate properties for the osteogenic differentiation of stem cells. Dental pulps are rich in stem cells, and dental pulp stem cells (DPSCs) have a high capacity for proliferation, differentiation, immunomodulation, and trophic factor expression. Researchers have tried to enhance osteogenesis through scaffold modification approaches, including incorporation or coating with mineral, inorganic materials, and herbal extract components. Among them, the incorporation of nanofibers with hyaluronic acid (HA) has been widely used to promote osteogenesis. In this review, the electrospun scaffolds and their modifications used in combination with DPSCs for bone regeneration are discussed.

Keywords: Osteogenesis; dental pulp stem cells; electrospinning; scaffold modification; tissue engineering..