Background: Human postnatal stem cells have been identified in periodontal ligaments (PDLs). In this study, the in vitro biologic properties of CD105⁺ enriched cell subsets from PDLs harvested from deciduous (DePDL) and permanent (PePDL) teeth are comparatively assessed.

Methods: PDL tissue was obtained from 12 teeth (six primary and six permanent) from which CD105⁺ CD34⁻ CD45⁻ cells were isolated by magnetic cell sorting. To identify and quantitatively compare the stem cell markers, DePDL and PePDL cells were assessed for CD166 surface antigen expression by flow cytometry, real‐time polymerase chain reaction, and immunostaining for Stro‐1 and Oct‐4, osteogenic and adipogenic differentiation, and proliferation rate by trypan blue method.

Results: Magnetic cell sorting isolated cell populations containing 23.87% (± 11.98%) and 11.68% (± 6.27%) of CD105⁺ expressing cells from PePDL and DePDL, respectively. Flow cytometric analysis demonstrated a higher proportion of CD105⁺ cells coexpressing CD166 surface antigen in PePDL, whereas immunostaining and real‐time polymerase chain reaction analysis demonstrated that both cell subsets expressed Stro‐1 and Oct‐4. DePDL‐CD105⁺ subsets were more proliferative compared to PePDL subsets, and both cell populations showed multipotential capabilities to differentiate in vitro to osteoblast/cementoblast– and adipocyte‐like cells. However, a higher expression of adipogenic‐related genes was observed in DePDL cells, whereas PePDL‐CD105⁺ cell subset presented a more homogeneous osteoblast/cementoblast response.

Conclusion: These findings demonstrate that highly purified mesenchymal progenitor cell subsets can be obtained from the PDLs of both deciduous and permanent teeth, and further indicate phenotype dissimilarities that may have an impact on their clinical applications.