Stem cells from human dental pulp have been used to create neuron-like cells capable of generating electrical impulses—opening up new possibilities for treating conditions such as Huntington’s disease and epilepsy, according to researchers at the University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU).
The peer-reviewed study, published in Stem Cell Research & Therapy, shows that these excitable cells can be derived without genetic modification. By exposing dental stem cells to precise stimuli and differentiation factors, researchers succeeded in generating cells with functional excitability and the ability to synthesize GABA—a neurotransmitter that regulates neuronal activity.
“The cells that we managed to differentiate are capable of synthesising a neurotransmitter known as GABA,” the research team said. “It is a type of inhibitory signalling … very important because there are neurodegenerative diseases … in which there is a selective death of those types of cells.”
Dr. Gaskon Ibarretxe and Dr. José Ramón Pineda, researchers in UPV/EHU’s Signaling Lab, said this represents a new approach to nervous system therapies. Unlike traditional treatments, which aim to reduce inflammation or protect surviving cells, the new strategy focuses on replacing lost neurons.
The next step will be transplanting the cells into animal models to assess whether they can reintegrate with damaged brain circuits. “We haven’t achieved that yet,” the team noted, “but we know it’s going to be very promising.”
The work is part of Beatriz Pardo-Rodríguez’s PhD thesis, co-supervised by Ibarretxe and Pineda, and includes contributions from the Achucarro Basque Center for Neuroscience.
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