Chinese scientists have created tiny 'tooth buds' that have been transplanted into mice and grown into tooth-like structures They are the first tissues to be developed using a technique where discarded cells from human waste can be coaxed into becoming stem cells The Chinese Academy of Sciences believes the technique could be used to create a bioengineered tooth bud for humans to regrow their teeth By Sarah Griffiths PUBLISHED: 19:36 EST, 29 July 2013 | UPDATED: 12:44 EST, 30 July 2013 325 shares 24 View comments Chinese scientists predict stem cells obtained from urine could allow humans to regrow lost teeth. The Chinese Academy of Sciences has created tooth-like structures in mice and believes one day bioengineered 'tooth buds' could be transplanted into humans who have lost their teeth. The primitive tooth-like structures are the first solid tissues to be developed using a technique in which discarded cells from human waste can be coaxed into becoming stem cells. The Chinese Academy of Sciences has created tooth-like structures in mice. The primitive teeth-like organs are the first solid organs or tissue to be developed using a technique where discarded cells from human waste can be coaxed into becoming stem cells Read … Continue reading →

July 30, 2013 Michael Harper for redOrbit.com Your Universe Online A team of researchers from Chinas Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health have demonstrated human teeth can be generated by stem cells from a very interesting source: Urine. The Chinese team says they can also generate other solid organs and tissues from human waste. Its been observed before that stem cells are found in urine. Furthermore, when these stem cells are collected, scientists can coerce them to become induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) which are capable of generating other types of cells. These cells can then be genetically molded and coaxed into other organs and tissues, including heart muscle cells and neurons. Duanqing Pei and the rest of the team from Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health now say theyve developed a way to coerce these iPSCs into teeth-like structures. Though these collections have the essential components of human teeth, the final product isnt quite as hard as the teeth humans are naturally born with. Their study is published this week in the open-access journal Cell Regeneration. Just as its been observed in normal tooth development, the new system created by the Chinese team makes use of the interaction between … Continue reading →

Featured Article Main Category: Dentistry Also Included In: Stem Cell Research Article Date: 30 Jul 2013 - 6:00 PDT Current ratings for: Urine used to create teeth - stem cell success 2.56 (16 votes) 2.4 (5 votes) Stem cell research is opening up the way for new teeth "grown" from an unlikely source - human urine. Chinese researchers describe how stem cells derived from urine could be used to generate solid organs and tissues, including teeth. Their study is published this week in the open-access journal Cell Regeneration. The researchers hope the technique might one day help provide new, tailor-made teeth for dental patients. Previous stem cell research has shown how cells can be generated from urine. It is also known that cells discarded with urea can become induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) that can then generate many different cell types, including neurons and heart muscle cells. Duanqing Pei and his colleagues from Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, and other Chinese universities have developed a novel chimeric tissue culture system that can coax these iPSCs into tiny structures that resemble teeth. Their system mimics normal tooth development, which results from an interaction between two different cell types: epithelial cells, … Continue reading →

July 29, 2013 Stem cells derived from urine can be used to generate tooth-like structures, reports a study published this week in the open access Cell Regeneration Journal. It's thought the technique might one day help researchers grow new, tailor-made teeth for dental patients. That stem cells can be generated from urine is not new; previous studies have shown that cells discarded in human urine can be coaxed to become induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), which themselves can generate many different cell types, including neurons and heart muscle cells. But researchers had yet to generate solid organs or tissues from iPSCs -- until now. Duanqing Pei and colleagues have developed a novel chimeric tissue culture system to coax human urine-derived iPSCs into tiny structures that resemble teeth. The system mimics normal tooth development, which results from an interaction between two different cell types; epithelial cells, which give rise to enamel, and mesenchymal cells, which give rise to the other three main components of teeth (dentin, cementum and pulp). First, the team used chemicals to coax the cultured iPSCs into flat sheets of epithelial cells. They then mixed these cells with mouse embryonic mesenchymal cells, and transplanted them into mice. Three … Continue reading →

Dr Duanqing Pei, of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, created the tooth-like structures by forcing iPSCs to mimic two different cell types; epithelial cells, which give rise to enamel, and mesenchymal cells, which give rise to the other three main components of teeth (dentin, cementum and pulp). They first created flat sheets of epithelial cells which they then mixed with mouse embryonic mesenchymal cells. The product was transplanted into mice, and three weeks later, tooth-like structures had grown. The authors said: "The primitive teeth-like organs are structurally and physically similar to human teeth. "They are of roughly the same elasticity, and contain pulp, dentin and enamel-forming cells. "But the method has its limitations - it involves mouse cells, has a success rate of around 30% and the structures were about one-third of the hardness of human teeth." Tweaking the mixture of cells and the condition of the culture tissue could solve these problems, the researchers said. They explained: "The revised method could, in theory, be used to create a bioengineered tooth bud that could be cultured in vitro then transplanted into the jawbone of a needy patient to form a fully functional tooth." Cells generated from a patient's urine would … Continue reading →