Chinese Journal of Tissue Engineering Research ›› 2026, Vol. 30 ›› Issue (7): 1858-1868.doi: 10.12307/2026.117

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Secretome of stem cells from human exfoliated deciduous teeth: a new hotspot in tissue engineering and stem cell therapy

Liu Xingyu1, 2, Li Lijie1, 2   

  1. 1Affiliated Hospital of Inner Mongolia Medical University, Hohhot 010050, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, China; 2School of Stomatology, Inner Mongolia Medical University, Hohhot 010059, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, China 
  • Received:2025-03-01 Revised:2025-06-20 Accepted:2025-07-03 Online:2026-03-08 Published:2025-08-21
  • Contact: Li Lijie, MS, Chief physician, Affiliated Hospital of Inner Mongolia Medical University, Hohhot 010050, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, China; School of Stomatology, Inner Mongolia Medical University, Hohhot 010059, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, China
  • About author:Liu Xingyu, Master candidate, Affiliated Hospital of Inner Mongolia Medical University, Hohhot 010050, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, China; School of Stomatology, Inner Mongolia Medical University, Hohhot 010059, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, China

Abstract: BACKGROUND: Stem cells from human exfoliated deciduous teeth have strong proliferation and differentiation potential, which have the advantages of less ethical controversy and immune rejection, so they have gradually become a current research focus in the field of stem cells.
OBJECTIVE: To summarize the research progress of the secretome of stem cells from human exfoliated deciduous teeth in recent years, explore the molecular mechanism of its therapeutic effect, analyze the present issue and look forward to the future development direction.
METHODS: CNKI and PubMed databases were selected to search for the keywords of “stem cells from human exfoliated deciduous teeth, mesenchymal stem cells, secretome, exosome, conditioned medium” in Chinese and English. 642 articles were obtained in the initial examination, and the latest articles in the past 5 years and those with an impact factor of more than 5 points in the past 10 years were selected. All the authors jointly evaluated the retrieved articles and excluded 569 articles with duplicate content and obsolete content with poor correlation, and finally included 73 articles for review.
RESULTS CONCLUSION: Stem cells from human exfoliated deciduous teeth have emerged as a crucial research object in the domain of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine in recent years, attributed to their distinctive biological characteristics. These stem cells originate from the dental pulp tissue of children's physiologically shed deciduous teeth and boast remarkable advantages such as multi-lineage differentiation potential (e.g., osteogenic, neurogenic, and angiogenic), extensive sources, and negligible ethical disputes. Researches indicate that stem cells from human exfoliated deciduous teeth not only demonstrate stronger proliferative capacity than bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells but also exhibit immunomodulatory properties and low immunogenicity, which enables them to showcase unique clinical application values in areas such as bone tissue repair, nerve regeneration, and periodontal tissue reconstruction. Alongside the transformation of the research paradigm in regenerative medicine, the advent of cell-free therapy strategies has paved new avenues for the application of stem cells from human exfoliated deciduous teeth. This strategy involves extracting the secretome of stem cells from human exfoliated deciduous teeth – a functional component encompassing various bioactive substances such as exosomes, cytokines, chemokines, and growth factors – circumventing the risks that might exist in traditional live cell transplantation, including low cell survival rate, immune rejection, and potential tumorigenicity. Findings reveal that the secretome from stem cells from human exfoliated deciduous teeth can mediate multiple biological effects such as angiogenesis, immunomodulation, anti-inflammation, and anti-apoptosis through paracrine mechanisms and has manifested remarkable therapeutic efficacy in animal models of liver injury repair, myocardial ischemia treatment, and bone defect regeneration. The current research hotspots center on analyzing the molecular composition of the secretome from stem cells from human exfoliated deciduous teeth through engineering techniques and constructing a cell-free therapy system with spatiotemporal controllability. The secretome from stem cells from human exfoliated deciduous teeth is anticipated to achieve standardized production and quality control within the framework of precision medicine, offering innovative solutions for the treatment of degenerative diseases and trauma repair. 

Key words: stem cells from human exfoliated deciduous teeth, secretome, conditioned medium, cell-free therapy, regenerative medicine, cell engineering

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