Berberine Promotes Osteogenic Differentiation of Human Dental Pulp Stem Cells Through Activating EGFR-MAPK-Runx2 Pathways.

Similar to the mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), dental pulp stem cells (DPSCs) also have pluripotent differentiation characteristic and may be more ideal for tissue regeneration, especially in tooth regeneration engineering. However, bacterial infection may be a powerful obstacle. Berberine (BBR), known with antibacterial effects, was recently found to play functions in bone formation through promoting osteogenic differentiation from pluripotent stem cells.