According to a BBC story, scientists at King’s College in London have successfully produced human teeth in a lab for the first time, an achievement that could completely transform dental care globally. By providing an alternative to dental implants or fillings, the discovery may benefit individuals who have lost teeth.
Together with Imperial College London, the King’s College research team was able to create a substance that replicates the conditions required for tooth formation. In a lab setting, one cell can effectively instruct another to begin changing into a tooth cell.
Humans only have one chance to repair their teeth, although many other animals can. Current replacement options, such as dental implants and both permanent and removable dentures, are intrusive and frequently fall short of completely restoring the natural shape and function of teeth.
The study noted, “This approach uses cells, biomaterials, and growth factors to engineer tooth structures that replicate the characteristics and capabilities of natural teeth.”
“Bioengineering an entire tooth is the aim of regenerative dentistry, which necessitates reproducing the interactions between the mesenchyme and dental epithelium.”
Millions of people worldwide suffer from tooth loss, a common health problem brought on by a variety of causes. Loss of teeth affects not only speaking and chewing but also appearance and mental health.
“I was drawn to London and King’s by the notion of biologically replacing the tooth through regrowth. We are actually filling in the knowledge gaps by developing a tooth in a dish,” said Dr. Ana Angelova-Volponi, who was involved in the work.
Next challenge
Xuechen Zhang, a final year PhD student at the Faculty of Dentistry, Oral and Craniofacial Sciences said the lab-grown teeth would naturally regenerate and integrate into the jaw as real teeth. The new teeth would be stronger, long-lasting and free from rejection risk, “offering a more durable and biologically compatible solution than fillings or implants”.
The next difficulty is to figure out how to get teeth from the lab into a patient’s mouth, even though scientists have already produced the conditions needed for tooth growth.
“Our approaches of placing the teeth inside the mouth differ. Mr. Zhang stated, “We could transplant the young tooth cells where the missing tooth is and allow them to grow inside the mouth.”
It might still take years, regardless of the method that scientists decide on. But the discovery might have ushered in a new era of dental treatment.
