Effects of adrenomedullin on proliferation and differentiation of dental pulp stem cells

Objective To explore the effects of adrenomedullin( ADM) on the proliferation and odontogenic differentiation potential of dental pulp stem cells( DPSCs). Methods The 3rdgeneration of cultured human DPSCs were treated with ADM of different concentrations( 10- 6mol / L,10- 7mol / L and 10- 8mol / L) for 24 h,and a blank control group was also set up. Cell apoptosis and cell cycle were measured by flow cytometry; the mRNA and protein expressions of alkaline phosphatase( ALP),an odontogenic differentiation marker,were analyzed by qPCR and Western blotting analysis,respectively. Results Cell cycle analysis showed that the proportion of G2/ S / M phase cells in the three ADM treatment groups were significantly higher than that in the blank control group( P 0. 05),but there were no significant differences between the three ADM groups. Cell apoptosis analysis showed that the proportion of cells labelled by Annexin Ⅴ+/ PI-was significantly lower in the three ADM groups than that in the blank control group( P 0. 05), but there were no signficant differences between the three ADM groups. The results of qPCR and Western blotting analysis showed that the ALP expression in DPSCs was increased significantly compared with that in the blank control group( P 0. 01),but there were no significant differences between the three ADM groups. Conclusion ADM can promote the proliferation and inhibit the apoptosis of DPSCs,and it can also promote odontogenic differentiation of DPSCs.