Futurology

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Humans may be able to grow new teeth within just 6 years. Japanese researchers are advancing a promising tooth-regrowing medicine into human trials. (www.popularmechanics.com)

submitted 1 month ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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[–] Zachariah 10 points 1 month ago (1 children)

            
              While bones can regrow themselves when they break, teeth aren’t so lucky, and that leads to millions of people worldwide suffering from some form of edentulism, a.k.a. toothlessness.
Now, Japanese researchers are moving a promising, tooth-regrowing medicine into human trials—the first patients will be receiving the drug intravenously in September of this year. 
If the trial is successful, the researchers hope the drug will become available for all forms of toothlessness sometime around 2030.

[–] EleventhHour 4 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Ok, so how does it work? Does it regrow a single tooth if it’s missing, or do you have to pull them all out, and it regrows the whole set?

[–] cynar 2 points 1 month ago (1 children)

It's likely an injection into the jaw. We already have the pathways to grow new teeth, and where. It's what kicks out milk teeth. It's likely a case of triggering it.

Worst case, your old teeth fall out.

[–] EleventhHour 2 points 1 month ago (1 children)

In the previous comment, the one I replied to, it says the drug is administered intravenously. I thought, like you did, it would be some sort of gel or cream or injection into an old tooth socket or something like that. However, it seems that the drug is administered intravenously and works systemically.

I find this all very fascinating

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Yeah, so what if you're like me and you've had a tooth pulled and replaced with an implant? There's a titanium drywall anchor embedded in my skull with a fake tooth bolted to it. What happens if I take this drug? Does it push the bone graft out?

[–] EleventhHour 2 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

Yeah, I’m in the same boat with a couple of teeth. I really wanna know what would happen in that case, lol.

Perhaps they would have to remove any dental implants before proceeding with the therapy.