To compare the osteogenic differentiation abilities of human bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (hBMSCs) from different sources, and to provide basis for choosing a new source of seed cells in bone tissue engineering.

Jaw bone-marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (JMMSCs) were isolated from orthognathic surgical sites and cultured by limited dilution for single cell clone. Long bone-marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (BMMSCs) were obtained from bone marrow of volunteers and isolated by density gradient centrifugation method. Flow cytometry was used to detect the surface markers of both cells. Osteogenic ability was assessed by PCR and Western Blot after osteogenic differentiation for the following molecules: Runx2, COL-1 and OCN. Alizarin red staining was used for determining the ability of cell mineralization after osteogenic differentiation.

The expressions of cell surface markers CD90 and CD105 were positive in both type of cells, while CD34, CD14 and CD45 were all negative. After 21 days of osteogenic induction, JMMSCs formed significantly more mineralized nodules than BMMSCs. After 7, 14, 21 days of osteogenic induction, JMMSCs expressed more osteogenic-related molecules than BMMSCs.

The osteogenic differentiation capacity and mineralization ability of JMMSCs are significantly higher than BMMSCs. Jaw bone might be a more suitable source of seed cells in bone tissue engineering compared with long bone.