Pioneering research suggests teeth could one day grow back

Researchers at King’s College London have grown teeth with dentin and enamel in mice using gum tissue from humans and tooth forming cells from mice. They were able to implant the tooth germ which re-orientated itself to form and recruit blood vessels from surrounding tissue to make a live tooth.
Researchers from the University of Nottingham and Harvard University are working on a therapeutic biomaterial that can heal a cavity, and intervene before a root canal is necessary. Adam Celiz, a postdoctoral fellow working on the project said: “This material can be injected in contact with pulp tissue and hardened with UV light to form a plastic. The native cells interact with the plastic and differentiate into a different kind of cell that produces dentin. So we’re hoping to restore that dentin layer to return vitality to the tooth, which means the pulp tissue wouldn’t have to be removed by a root canal.” This cutting-edge research has the potential to give millions of people a better quality of life.
CEO of the Oral Health Foundation, Dr Nigel Carter said: “Millions of people across the world lose teeth for many different reasons. Tooth loss can happen because of an unfortunate accident, poor oral health or another illness. But no matter how we lose them, missing teeth can mean problems in our everyday life. Missing teeth can affect how we eat, smile and speak. It can even have an impact on our confidence and mental well-being. Our current options to replace missing teeth include bridges, dentures and implants. These are great ways to replace lost teeth and give us back the confidence we need to smile. Given the choice however, we would always choose to have our own natural teeth. As exciting as the prospect may be, the ability to grow our own teeth remains quite a long way off. It may take decades for it to reach a point when it becomes routine within dentistry.”