人牙髓干细胞（hDPSCs）是牙组织工程中最具潜力的种子细胞，关于DPSCs自我更新、分化过程的调控机制和基因表达网络的研究，尤其是DPSCs在体内的干性维持、微环境的特性，参与修复损伤的调控等问题知之甚少。课题组前期研究发现模拟微重力条件下hDPSCs增殖、黏附增强，细胞骨架改变和迁移能力减弱，体外矿化能力降低且ITGA6B1表达升高；抑制ITGB1影响细胞外基质信号而改变其分化能力。因此我们推测整合素（ITG）使干细胞锚定于微环境中直接调控干细胞的自我更新和分化。本研究将构建ITGA6B1对DPSCs干性维持和分化作用的基因调控网络，挖掘关键基因。同时，利用类器官培养和条件敲除小鼠揭示ITGA6B1与体内干细胞池和微环境的相互调节，明确损伤后DPSCs参与修复的调动。这些问题的解析将丰富DPSCs的基础理论，对DPSCs在牙体组织修复、牙再生及空间医学的发展具有重要意义。

Human Dental pulp stem cells(hDPSCs) are the most promising seed cells in tooth tissue engineering. The research on the regulatory mechanisms and gene expression network involved in the process of self-renewal and differentiation of DPSCs, especially the stemness maintenance, microenvironmental characteristics, and the roles of DPSCs during damage repairing, is still limited. The preliminary experiments of our research have found that under simulated microgravity conditions, the proliferation and adhesion of hDPSCs were enhanced, with changed cytoskeleton and weakend migration ability, decreased mineralization ability and increased expression of ITGA6B1. What’s more, inhibition of ITGB1 has affected the extracellular matrix signal pathway and changed differentiation ability of DPSCs. Therefore, we speculate that ITG anchors the stem cells directly in the microenvironment and regulate the self-renewal and differentiation of DPSCs, therefore, this study aims to construct the gene regulatory network related with ITGA6B1 in stemness maintenance and differentiation regulation of DPSCs, and explore the key genes that are involved. Meanwhile, the interaction of ITGA6B1 with stem cell niche and microenvironment will be explored by using organ culture and gene-knockout mice. These questions will enrich the basic theory of DPSCs and have important significance for understanding the role of DPSCs in tooth tissue repair, tooth regeneration and space medicine.