Immunoregulatory effects of dental mesenchymal stem cells on T and B lymphocyte responses in primary Sjögren's syndrome.

Plain language summary In this article, the authors investigate the modulatory effects of dental mesenchymal stem cells (dental MSCs) on lymphocyte responses in primary Sjögren's syndrome (pSS), which is characterized by the infiltration of lymphocytes in exocrine glands. Lymphocyte proliferation, apoptosis, Tregs and total Bregs, intracellular cytokine secretion, total memory, plasma and naive B cell subsets were analyzed in pSS patients and compared them with healthy individuals. Dental follicle- and dental pulp-MSCs modulated CD4⁺ T lymphocyte responses in pSS patients' mononuclear cells by increasing Fas-ligand expression, enhancing FoxP3-expressing Tregs, and decreasing pro-inflammatory cytokine secretion. Our findings provide evidence for the potential role of dental-MSCs as a cellular therapy option in the treatment of pSS.