About this Research Topic
A fundamental biological property of all multicellular organisms is their ability to respond to injuries. Tissue repair and regeneration following injury is one of the most complex and dynamic biological processes that occur during human life. Wound healing consists of a sequence of cellular (cell death, proliferation, migration and differentiation) and molecular events that are activated immediately after tissue damage. Successful restoration of tissue integrity and homeostasis upon injury relies on the reactivation of a variety of intracellular and intercellular signalling pathways and their coordinated action. The biological responses to injury occur in overlapping but distinct stages involving the immune system, neovascularization, new tissue formation and tissue remodelling processes.
Although the wound repair processes in most of the adult tissues lead to the formation of scars (highly fibrotic tissues), several injured oral tissues have the ability to regenerate without fibrosis throughout adult life. Concerning teeth, injuries due to cavity preparation and carious lesions induce activation of regenerative mechanisms within the dental pulp tissue, an event that involves reorganization of the neuronal and vascular network, as well as the involvement of stem/progenitor cells. Biological repair of craniofacial and dental tissues represents an attractive alternative and complement to the prosthetic replacement techniques. Knowledge gained from studying wound healing in craniofacial and dental tissues might help to unlock latent repair mechanisms, which would be beneficial for future regenerative approaches in clinics.
Therefore, this Research Topic intends to provide a comprehensive overview of how craniofacial and dental tissues respond to destructive insults, highlight signalling pathways that foster tissue regeneration, report on the most recent developments in treatments involving a combination of stem-cell biology, tissue engineering and nanotechnology.
We encourage researchers to contribute to this Research Topic with original research articles, review articles, commentaries and perspectives that could stimulate the continuous efforts to understand wound healing biology within craniofacial and dental tissues. We are also interested in articles dealing with potentially novel treatment strategies in tissue regeneration.
Although the wound repair processes in most of the adult tissues lead to the formation of scars (highly fibrotic tissues), several injured oral tissues have the ability to regenerate without fibrosis throughout adult life. Concerning teeth, injuries due to cavity preparation and carious lesions induce activation of regenerative mechanisms within the dental pulp tissue, an event that involves reorganization of the neuronal and vascular network, as well as the involvement of stem/progenitor cells. Biological repair of craniofacial and dental tissues represents an attractive alternative and complement to the prosthetic replacement techniques. Knowledge gained from studying wound healing in craniofacial and dental tissues might help to unlock latent repair mechanisms, which would be beneficial for future regenerative approaches in clinics.
Therefore, this Research Topic intends to provide a comprehensive overview of how craniofacial and dental tissues respond to destructive insults, highlight signalling pathways that foster tissue regeneration, report on the most recent developments in treatments involving a combination of stem-cell biology, tissue engineering and nanotechnology.
We encourage researchers to contribute to this Research Topic with original research articles, review articles, commentaries and perspectives that could stimulate the continuous efforts to understand wound healing biology within craniofacial and dental tissues. We are also interested in articles dealing with potentially novel treatment strategies in tissue regeneration.
Keywords: wound healing, oral mucosa, teeth, dental pulp, periodontium, craniofacial tissues, signalling pathways, stem cells, tissue engineering, nanotechnology, tissue regeneration
Important Note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.
