Mesenchymal stem cells can effectively regenerate destroyed periodontal tissue. Because periodontal tissues are complex, mesenchymal stem cells that can differentiate into many tissue types would aid periodontal tissue regeneration. Indeed, periodontal tissue regeneration using mesenchymal stem cells derived from adipose tissue or bone marrow has been performed in experimental animal models, such as rat, canine, swine, and monkey. We have shown that rat periodontal tissue can be regenerated with adipose-derived stem cells. Adipose tissue contains a large number of stromal cells and is relatively easy to obtain in large quantities, and thus constitutes a very convenient stromal cell source. In this chapter, we introduce a rat periodontal tissue regeneration model using adipose-derived stem cells.
