Molecular mechanisms in dental follicle precursor cells during the osteogenic differentiation.

The discovery of dental stem cells received extensive attention because of its significance for the development of novel cellular therapies in dentistry. However, dental stem cells are also excellent for studies about cellular processes during dental tissue development or regeneration. Multipotent undifferentiated cells in the dental follicle (DFCs) are one example of dental stem cells. These cells have been used on studies about cellular processes during the differentiation into alveolar osteoblasts and cementoblasts. This review article summarizes current knowledge about the influence of signaling pathways, transcription factors and extracellular matrix proteins on the osteogenic differentiation of DFCs.