To the Editor: In the last decade, tissue engineering is a field that has been undergoing an enormous expansion in the fields of regenerative medicine and dentistry. To date, mesechy-mal stem cells (MSCs) are a promising tool for clinical applications in the near future as a result of their accessibility and their transdifferentiation plasticity. The possibility of harvesting postnatal stem cells for later use in the same patient eliminates immunological difficulties and the risk of pathogen transmission. Adult stem cells from autologous origin are an appealing, and practical, source for cell-based regenerative therapies that hold realistic clinical potential. MSCs were first described in 1968 as an adherent, clonogenic, nonphagocytic, and fibroblastic-like population of bone marrow cells. Since then, they have been isolated from many other tissues, including adipose tissues, cord blood, placenta, amniotic fluid, and dental tissues. MSCs are multipotent and can differentiate into cells of mesodermal, endodermal, and ectodermal lineages.
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