Cryopreservation of stem cells may sound like science fiction, but I assure you, it is not.
According to scientists, baby teeth have stem cells that help regenerate various parts of the body, so one day, these tiny teeth could save lives.
Some parents have taken this to heart and have started storing their children’s teeth for the future. This is called tooth banking.
The cells from which all of our organs and tissues grow are called stem cells. Their capacity to divide, heal, and rejuvenate the human body sets them apart. Stem cells come from two primary sources (1):
What Are Stem Cells?
Embryos: Also referred to as embryonic stem cells, they are created during the
- blastocyst stage of embryological development.
- Adult stem cells, also known as adult tissue
Both are characterized by their potency and potential to turn into other types of cells like muscle or bone.
The stem cells found in baby teeth are known as SHED cells and have slightly different properties than the other kinds.
“The SHED cells seem to make not only dentin but also something that is similar to bone,” says Dr. Pamela Robey, chief of the branch of the craniofacial and skeletal disease of the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research. (2)
Biological insurance
As a kind of biological insurance, baby teeth can be preserved and are a source of stem cells similar to bone marrow. However, there is still disagreement among scientists, physicians, and dentists over its current value.
“Right now, I don’t think it is a logical thing to do. That’s my personal opinion,” says Dr. Robey. “That’s not to say that in the future, somebody could come up with a method that would make them very beneficial,” (3)
Potential applications of stem cells include (2, 3):
- Dental pulp regeneration
- complete tooth regeneration
- Repair diseased or chemotherapy-damaged cells
- Treating blood-related conditions includes multiple myeloma, leukemia, lymphoma, and neuroblastoma.
“The science is strong enough to show it’s not science fiction,” said American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry President Dr. Jade Miller. “There’s going to be a significant application, and I want to give my grandkids the opportunity to have those options.”
Baby Teeth Cryopreservation, aka ‘Tooth Banking’
Dentists and stem cell researchers have collaborated to develop stem cell banks for teeth, but there is still much to learn. ToothBank and Store-A-Tooth are two examples of these.
The teeth are shipped to their lab, where the stem cells are extracted. They then keep them in a culture so that the cells can proliferate. Following that, those cells are removed and placed in cryopreservation.
Prepare yourself for some severe sticker shock if you want to store your kids’ teeth: Store-A-Tooth charges an upfront fee of $1,747 and an annual fee of $120.
Researchers are unable to forecast when the technology and research necessary to employ such stem cells will be available.
This implies that you might invest a lot of money on something that will never pay off. (4)
Further Stem Cell Research is needed.
There have been some positive developments, such as a 2018 University of Pennsylvania trial. The experiment showed that stem cells from newborn teeth can be used to create dental tissue (5,6).
The majority of specialists concur that it is still much too soon to think of using dental pulp stem cells as a source of cells for tissue regeneration or replacement. However, scientists already know that tooth pulp can become bone, so the possibility is there.
We may be getting closer to this emerging technology’s full potential as more study is conducted.
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