Tufts University researchers have successfully grown a tooth-like structure using material from human and pig teeth. This breakthrough could pave the way for creating living tooth replacements in the future. The team combined soft tissue from both human and pig teeth and transplanted it into a mini pig's mouth, resulting in a bioengineered tooth that closely resembles a natural one. While this technology is not yet ready for human use, researchers are optimistic that advancements in regenerative medicine and dentistry will accelerate the development of new teeth and other organs.
Tufts University researchers took material from human and pig teeth and were able to grow a tooth-like structure. They hope their findings could lead to growing living tooth replacement s for people.If we lose the small living structures that help us chew our food, we're left with the options of replacing them with dentures or implants thatPamela Yelick, a professor at the Tufts School of Dental Medicine and lead researcher of the effort, said pigs have as many as five or six sets of teeth that grow throughout their lives.
If scientists can understand how pigs regrow and replace teeth so many times, Yelick said, they might be able to regrow teeth in people. In their research, Yelick and her team took soft living tissue from both human and pig teeth, combined them in a lab, and then transplanted it into a mini pig's mouth. They obtained the materials from pig jawbones and human teeth extracted for orthodontic reasons. "In a few months, you can get a pretty good sized bioengineered tooth," Yelick said, noting that while it's"not perfect" in shape or size, the end product does closely resemble a natural tooth.The science is not ready to be used in humans just yet, Yelick said. But she is hopeful that with advancements the fields of regenerative medicine and dentistry will accelerate the ability to create new teeth and other organs. Yelick says the idea is to study how pig teeth grow and then try to figure out how to replicate that process in people. She says this research could help improve how we repair and replace our teeth so that they are stronger and last longer. "When you think of a tooth crown or a dental implant, some of the methods that have been used have been around for a hundred years," Yelick said."Time to get some better substitutes out there."
Regenerative Medicine Dentistry Tooth Replacement Bioengineering Animal Studies
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