Resumo

MACHADO, Cíntia de Vasconcellos; NASCIMENTO, Ivana Lúcia Oliveira  e  TELLES, Paloma Dias da Silva. Stem cells and their niches: importance in tissue engineering applied to dentistry. RGO, Rev. gaúch. odontol. (Online) [online]. 2013, vol.61, n.2, pp. 263-268. ISSN 1981-8637.

Niches are special microenvironments in tissue where stem cells are located. At these sites, which are a compound of stromal cells, extracellular matrix and soluble factors, complex molecular interactions that maintain the essential properties of stem cells occur, such as self-renewal and differentiation into multiple lineages, according to the organism's needs. Some adult stem cell niches have already been described, but the majority of them remain unclear, including the dental pulp stem cell niches. Dental pulp stem cells have been isolated from deciduous and permanent teeth and have the potential to self-renew and differentiate. However, little is known about the exact anatomic location of these cells, and the relationship between stem cells and surrounding cells in dental pulp. Understanding how stem cells behave in the niche is extremely important in order to extract these cells from their natural habitat, expand them in vitro and transplant the stem cells back to the patient, to repair and/or regenerate tissues and organs, with no risks to the individual's integrity. Likewise, the knowledge of stem cell biology is crucial to the development of stem cell therapies, based on tissue engineering applied to dentistry, seeking the regeneration of dental tissues damaged or lost by caries, trauma or genetic diseases.

Palavras-chave : Dental pulp.; Stem cells.; Stem cell niche..