Scientists Grow Teeth From Gum Cells

Curated News:

By Timberlake Dental curated from Medical News Today

“…UK researchers revealed how they have developed a way to bioengineer new teeth
from a person’s own gum cells…”

See full article on Medical News Today

Commentary:

This technique is still very much in the research phase – with everything being done in a lab – with lab mouse cells.  It is however, amazing to consider that we might be able to just grow new teeth in the future.   This new technique was reported by King’s College London in  a new addition of the Journal of Dental Research.   What they did was combine human gum cells with a type of embryonic mouse cell to simulate gum cells to grow teeth.

Natural teeth form in an embryo based on the interaction of two types of cell: epithelial cells and mesenchymal cells.  By artificially implanting these types of cells in adult gum tissue in just the right way, new adult teeth may be stimulated to grow in place.  This sounds simple enough but of course is immensely complex – and will take a long time to develop into a clinically feasible technique.  We’ll just have wait and to see what the future will be with this idea.

Dr. Rodney D. Chowning, Dental Impants, General and Sedation Dentistry, Denton, TX

 

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Posted by chowning940 on Mar 25th, 2013 7:57 pm
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