The Combined Effect of Mineral Trioxide Aggregate and Enamel Matrix Derivative on Odontoblastic Differentiation in Human Dental Pulp Cells

IntroductionThe current study investigated the effectiveness of enamel matrix derivative (EMD) and mineral trioxide aggregate (MTA) in inducing the differentiation of human dental pulp cells (HDPCs) into odontoblast-like cells in vitro.MethodsThe effects of MTA and EMD on odontoblastic differentiation were indexed by alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity and the expression of odontoblastic/osteoblastic markers, as determined by reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction analysis. Mineralization was also evaluated by the staining of calcium deposits with Alizarin red. Cells were treated with a combination of MTA and EMD or with MTA alone.ResultsCompared with MTA-treated cells on day 3, MTA/EMD-treated cells exhibited significantly greater increases in ALP activity and in dentin sialophosphoprotein and bone sialoprotein expression. Mineralization was significantly greater on day 7 in MTA/EMD-treated cells than in MTA-treated cells.ConclusionsThese results suggest that a combination of MTA and EMD promotes more rapid differentiation in HDPCs than MTA alone and that this combination is thus a potential pulp-capping agent.