Abstract: Objective To evaluate the therapeutic effect of stem cells from human exfoliated deciduous teeth (SHED) on a mouse model of liver cirrhosis.Methods A mouse model of experimental liver cirrhosis was induced by introperitoneally injection of CCl₄. SHED and normal saline solution were injected through the tail veins in the experimental group and the control group per week, respectively. After 4 weeks injection, liver function and liver pathological manifestations of the mice were evaluated. Results The total bilirubin (4.73±0.06 μmol/L vs 6.27±0.50 μmol/L, P=0.038), alanine aminotransferase (48.33±5.13 U/L vs 64.33±3.06 U/L, P=0.0097), aspartate aminotransferase (107.67±17.56 U/L vs 149.00±7.55 U/L, P=0.020) and alkaline phosphatase (142.00±28.93 mmol/L vs 240.00±30.51 mmol/L, P=0.0156) of the SHED group were significantly recovered than those of the control group. The body weight (25.80±1.02 g vs 22.86±0.97 g,P=0.0016) and liver weight (2.16±0.11 g vs 1.88±0.15 g, P=0.0101) of the SHED group regained as well. Meanwhile, the pathological manifestation of liver tissues after SHED treatment was obviously reversed in mice of the SHED group.Conclusion In CCl₄ induced mouse model of liver cirrhosis, both the liver functions and pathology manifestations were significantly improved after SHED treatment, which indicated that SHED had a promising therapeutic effect on liver cirrhosis.

Key words: Cirrhosis, Liver fibrosis, Stem cells from human exfoliated deciduous teeth, Animal model