Intracellular complex carbohydrates in the normal and inflamed dental pulp

abstract — Forty-four inflamed pulps from human and monkey teeth were studied using histochemical staining methods. In pulps from carious human teeth, mast cells and many fibroblasts containing glycogen-like granules were regularly observed. In monkey pulps, where pulpitis was induced experimentally, mast cells were found only occasionally, and glycogen-like granules were absent. However, some fibroblasts in normal and inflamed monkey pulps contained periodic acid-Schiff (PAS) positive granules, which were resistant to amylase. Such granules were not found in human pulp fibroblasts.