Transcriptome Profile of Membrane and Extracellular Matrix Components in Ligament-Fibroblastic Progenitors and Cementoblasts Differentiated from Human Periodontal Ligament Cells

• Published in: Genes Vol. 13; no. 4; p. 659
• Main Authors: Mun, Seyoung, Kim, Seong Min, Choi, Min-Jeong, Jang, Young-Joo
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 08-04-2022; MDPI
• Subjects: Antibodies; Cadherins; Cell adhesion & migration; Cell differentiation; Cell Differentiation - genetics; Cell membranes; Clustering; Dental Cementum; Extracellular matrix; Extracellular Matrix - genetics; Extracellular Matrix - metabolism; Gene expression; Glycosaminoglycans; Humans; Immunohistochemistry; Ligaments; Microenvironments; Next-generation sequencing; Periodontal ligament; Periodontal Ligament - metabolism; Periodontium; Progenitor cells; Proteins; Proteoglycans; Stem cells; Transcriptome - genetics; Transcriptomes; Transforming growth factor-b1; United States > US; cementoblasts; human periodontal ligament stem cells; RNA sequencing analysis; cell surface molecules; extracellular matrix molecules; periodontal ligament-fibroblastic progenitors; stem/progenitor cell niches
• ISSN: 2073-4425; 2073-4425
• DOI: 10.3390/genes13040659

Ligament-fibroblastic cells and cementoblasts, two types of progenitor cells that differentiate from periodontal ligament stem cells (hPDLSCs), are responsible for the formation of the adhesive tissues in the tooth root. Since one of the factors that determines the fate of stem cell differentiation is the change in the microenvironment of the stem/progenitor cells, this study attempted to compare and analyze the molecular differences in the membrane and ECM of the two progenitor cells. Single cells derived from hPDLSCs were treated with TGF-β1 and BMP7 to obtain ligament-fibroblastic and cementoblastic cells, respectively. The transcriptome profiles of three independent replicates of each progenitor were evaluated using next-generation sequencing. The representative differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were verified by qRT-PCR, Western blot analysis, and immunohistochemistry. Among a total of 2245 DEGs identified, 142 and 114 DEGs related to ECM and cell membrane molecules were upregulated in ligament-fibroblastic and cementoblast-like cells, respectively. The major types of integrin and cadherin were found to be different between the two progenitor cells. In addition, the representative core proteins for each glycosaminoglycan-specific proteoglycan class were different between the two progenitors. This study provides a detailed understanding of cell-cell and cell-ECM interactions through the specific components of the membrane and ECM for ligament-fibroblastic and cementoblastic differentiation of hPDLSCs.