Key points from article :
Scientists are looking for ways to channel teeth’s regenerative power into a biological solution for tooth loss.
By delivering stem cells into the tooth and giving them the right signals to regenerate the damaged cells.
Angelova Volponi, a researcher, to identify key molecules & genetically engineer stem cells to amp up their wound healing capabilities.
Exosomes may reduce the inflammation, help the cells survive, and also maintain the vitality of the teeth.
Delivering exosomes, stem cells, or other molecules to spur tooth growth requires materials such as hydrogels or scaffolds.
Volponi said that it is important to study gene expression patterns that drive the formation of diverse tooth shapes.
Lab-grown teeth are still far from being ready for humans, as they grow too slowly to make them usable on demand in the clinic.
“On every extraction of a tooth, you can derive cells with stem cell properties very close to the bone marrow,” - Volponi.
Already used tooth-derived stem cells to regenerate everything from insulin-producing pancreatic beta cells to bladder muscle cells.
Scientists crafted a cocktail of molecules that made dental pulp stem cells transform into cells that resembled those in the cornea.
“It’s a shift in the way we see future treatments...based on biological repair and regeneration, rather than replacing the tissues with inorganic materials.”
