Organ Regeneration: Successful Tooth Replacement

Organ regeneration is a key focus of medical research, with the potential to provide relief to an incredible array of ailments and afflictions. This article presents a new method of inducing this regenerative property, paying special attention to the interactions between epithelial and mesenchymal cells (interactions similar to those present in the developmental stages of the organism, when organs are forming naturally). The most exciting facet of this discovery is the fact that successful growth was achieved- that of a tooth in the oral cavity of an adult mouse. Not only did the tooth develop from a bioengineered tooth germ cell in vitro, but it erupted through the gum independent of artificial stimuli, and was also mechanically similar to a natural tooth (proving that the right developmental conditions stimulate--and even necessitate--the resulting structural charactaristics of the organ/tissue). There was even evidence of neurological action surrounding the tooth, as it responded to painful and mechanically stressful stimuli.


The importance of this discovery doesn't end with dental care, but encompasses the whole range of regenerative therapy. The ability to understand the basis of organ and tissue regeneration could have a huge preventative and therapeutic role in countless diseases, from Parkinson's disease to heart attacks. Since I'm interested in the medical field, the possibility that such bioengineering advances may be integrated into daily, modern medicine is both exciting and motivating, especially knowing that research is getting closer and closer to turning dream into reality.

http://www.pnas.org/content/early/2009/07/31/0902944106.full.pdf