Groundbreaking research uses stem cells to relieve mouth, face pain

In rat models, the pain never came back after stem cell injection. But in the untreated group, the pain lasted up to 22 weeks, or the length of the experimental period.

Researchers simulated two types of pain: myogenic pain (by ligating, or tying up, the masticatory muscle tendon) and neuropathic pain (by tying up the nerve on the face). Stem cells successfully reduced pain in both cases.

The next step is a clinical trial to treat recalcitrant orofacial pain.

Researchers also found that this pain suppression is in part mediated through the endogenous opioid system operated centrally (in the brain) and peripherally (at the injured site). Further mechanisms to explain how this works are now under investigation.

Associate Professor of Endodontics Dr. George Huang worked on the study with Dr. Ke Ren, professor at the University of Maryland School of Dentistry.

The Boston University Henry M. Goldman School of Dental Medicine will be the premier academic dental institution promoting excellence in dental education, research, oral health care, and community service to improve the overall health of the global population.

We will provide outstanding service to a diverse group of students, patients, faculty, staff, alumni, and healthcare professionals within our facilities, our community, and the world.

We will shape the future of the profession through scholarship, creating and disseminating new knowledge, developing and using innovative technologies and educational methodologies, and by promoting critical thinking and lifelong learning.

We will do so in an ethical, supportive environment, consistent with our core values of respect, truth, responsibility, fairness, compassion; and our operational values of excellence, service and effective communication in synergy with the strategic plan of Boston University.

We will support this mission using responsible financial policies and philanthropy.

Provided by Boston University