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Scientists Likely Found Way to Grow New Teeth for Patients

245 points by elorant 7y ago

vxNsr 7y ago
Was just joking with my dentist about this. As a kid and teenager I was very bad about brushing and only flossed if I had something painful stuck in my teeth, I’ve paid for it with tons of cavities. She said I need to be careful about how hard I floss now because I could damage the fillings and then will need implants for some of them. I jokingly replied that hopefully by the time the need arose science would be able to regrow a full set of teeth for me.
- kachurovskiy 7y ago
  Brushing teeth is a must but flossing wasn't proven to have measurable effect on teeth health last time I checked.
  - csunbird 7y ago
    (Not a dentist) Depends on the brush usage and type of the brush I would say, some brushes are not able to pick up small leftover food between teeth. I find it incredibly useful to floss before sleeping, since that is the time where you are guaranteed to not eat or drink anything for a long time, not giving any chance for bacteria to grow.
    - Ididntdothis 7y ago
      I have a Waterpik and also do oil pulling with coconut oil almost every day. Especially with the coconut oil the dentist noticed a difference in gum health even without me telling him.
      - manmal 7y ago
        How long do you pull? Is 2m enough?
        Ididntdothis 7y ago
        Ten minutes. At first I hated the oil but now I kind of like it.
      - adrianN 7y ago
        Last time I checked there was no evidence that oil pulling did anything that normal mouth wash couldn't do better.
        Ididntdothis 7y ago
        For me it feels different , less aggressive. It’s also cheaper. But whatever works for you, do it.
      - forgetfulusr 7y ago
        the waterpik is the most useful tool I found this decade. I think I have become over-reliant on it. My teeth barely have any space between them, so I always end up tearing the regular string floss, and I would never be able to reach/cover so many parts of the mouth without a waterpik/ water flosser. Had not heard of oil pulling, thanks!
        shortandsweet 7y ago
        Do you find it more or less effective than regular flossing? I've been looking for alternatives to plastic picks/floss. Also they seem to be damaging my gums as I floss too hard
        Ididntdothis 7y ago
        That’s just me but I am fairly certain that the Waterpik benefits my teeth and gums more than flossing. I do both but if I had to drop one it would be flossing.
        forgetfulusr 7y ago
        More effective since I barely did any regular flossing before. I have(or had) sensitive gums and I would constantly bleed and I never developed a proper technique and habit with regular floss. with this, it feels like everything between the teeth gets flushed. The string floss still gets used when I am out (no more bleeding) but even once I get home I use the Waterpik, and I can still see some bits I missed. This sounds like an ad but I have been super satisfied with a Mornwell wireless oral irrigator. ideal usecase for a wireless charging station, since I always worried about it being wet near wirea with the older ones I had. I am still waiting for something bad to happen to me since this has helped me too much.
        magduf 7y ago
        I use the Crest "Glide" floss; with regular floss, I'm constantly cutting it in half between some of my teeth which are very close together, but the Glide stuff seems to work much better. Strangely, I've had one dentist tell me Glide floss is horrible and I should use some other floss that's "fluffy" (sorry, can't remember the brand/type, I think it was a J&J product), while more recent dentists give me Glide samples every time I visit. I tried that other dentist's recommended floss for a little while, but it was the absolute worst I tried in terms of tearing; it was basically unusable because it just kept getting ripped in half due to my tight contacts.
    - zerkten 7y ago
      It depends on your teeth too. We can appear to have near perfect teeth, but they can still be compromised in a way that flossing can help.
  - clSTophEjUdRanu 7y ago
    Do you really need a study to prove you shouldn't have rotting food stuck between your teeth?
    - ekianjo 7y ago
      Why not? You have saliva in your mouth with enzymes that usually get in a number of remote places anyway. Not sure why you would assume flossing is required if there are other mechanisms that already take care of that problem.
      - MichaelApproved 7y ago
        Don't floss for a month and see how well saliva is at breaking down the food between your teeth. There are lots of mechanisms your body has that are adequate enough to get you to puberty, so you can reproduce. If you want better than adequate, you should floss.
        magduf 7y ago
        Another important factor with these "our bodies already have a natural mechanism..." arguments is that we don't eat the same foods that prehistoric people did when they evolved, in addition to the fact that we now expect to live to 80-100 while still being highly mobile and having all our original teeth if possible. Prehistoric people did live to old age if they didn't get killed by disease or wild animals or accidents or murder, but they probably didn't look too good at that age and probably didn't have many teeth left either.
    - MichaelApproved 7y ago
      You should be asking for the study that proves flossing is beneficial.
  - wmeredith 7y ago
    There was a huge (flawed) news story back in 2016 that reported flossing wasn’t worth it and it spread like wildfire because people don’t like to floss. Kind of like how there’s a big “wine/chocolate is good for you” article every couple years. I’ve worked alongside dentists in and off in a marketing capacity. I’ve also been married to one for 15+ years and I can tell you that every dentist in the country can look in your mouth and knows whether you floss regularly or not by the amount of plaque built up between your teeth. And plaque is bad. The NIH published an article shortly after the one I mentioned above to try and combat the misinformation: https://newsinhealth.nih.gov/2016/11/dont-toss-floss https://newsinhealth.nih.gov/2016/11/dont-toss-floss More on Snopes: https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.snopes.com/news/2016/08/06/flossing-isnt-backed-by-science/amp/ https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.snopes.com/news/2016/08/06/... TL;DR: flossing is poorly executed by most people (much like brushing) and the studies on it are flawed, but you’d be hard pressed to find an oral healthcare pro that would recommend against it, and almost all are for it. And no, there is no “big flossing lobby” pushing it.
    - lonelappde 7y ago
      Then why have my dentists over the past decades always asked me how much I floss (I don't) instead of giving me increasingly severe warnings about my tooth damage due to lack of flossing?
      - abootstrapper 7y ago
        “How much do you floss?” In no way implies they think you floss often. It’s actually the reverse. For example, if someone ask “How much do you shower?” It’s a not so subtle hint that you stink, not that they think you shower often.
    - lonelappde 7y ago
      You aren't contradicting parent poster. Snopes conformed that flossing is backed only by the speculation and comical bias of dentists who don't collect data careful. (Healthy gums are assumed to be evidence for flossing, therefore flossing is confused to be evidence for healthy gums).
    - 7y ago
  - qrbLPHiKpiux 7y ago
    Dentist here. The main take away from the study is that if you’re not flossing the right way, don’t bother because it won’t do any good. So floss the right way.
    - Covzire 7y ago
      What's your opinion of picks? I use about 3 or 4 a day after meals and always remove a little matter stuck between teeth that no doubt could serve as bacteria buffet. Surely getting rid of those bacterial food sources is better than "bad flossing" right?
      - qrbLPHiKpiux 7y ago
        I personally use Plackers brand picks.
  - lr4444lr 7y ago
    It has an effect on gum health, which is far more important for the integrity of your teeth and overall health than some superficial crevices that can be filled. EDIT: Also, we understand the mechanism by which food left in the teeth contributes to gum disease very well. I'm all for demanding high quality epidemiological evidence when we just have a hunch about things, because we deserve at least some correlational power to any claim, but the way in which this data is collected by something as difficult to monitor, annoying to some people, and socially pressured as oral hygiene is deservedly suspect IMHO given our direct clinical knowledge of the health matter in question: it's aetiology, progression, and reversal, on an observable level per organism is very well understood by modern dentistry, AFAIK.
- specialist 7y ago
  My dentist hates google, internet, science reporting, etc. Patients are always asking about miracle cures. So for years now I poke the bear by excitedly asking about some new treatment I had "just read about" (meaning I just made it up). Stem cells, nanobots, lasers, supplements, etc. It's fun to see him get spun up. He's so serious, earnest. Slow to catch on that I'm poking him. Before he pokes me.
dsukhin 7y ago
This was a very exciting title but a very dodgy article. It references two independent areas of active research but concludes one doesn't work in practice yet and the other (which is buried in this report [0] from Columbia from 2013) works only in rats with stem cells and growth factors. So surely, either the title is misleading about this being viable for humans yet, or there is more progress on the subject beyond what is here and there is a better and more recent source available. Either way, an exciting topic I've also been wondering about for a long time. [0] https://techventures.columbia.edu/news-and-events/latest-news/recruiting-body-help-regrow-new-joints https://techventures.columbia.edu/news-and-events/latest-new...
mrfusion 7y ago
I’ve been seeing articles about this since the 90s. I don’t think it will ever happen. Even if we had the technology, dealing with stem cells would be super expensive compared to doing a bridge or implant. And for whatever reason, dentistry is an extremely conservative field.
helge9210 7y ago
... In mice
- rasz 7y ago
  @justsaysinmice
sandworm101 7y ago
Why grow new biological teeth? We have the material to create and implant fake teeth that are better in every way. The real question should be when will it become more practical to simply replace a tooth rather than fill/cap/drill to save the biological tooth.
- whiddershins 7y ago
  I have trouble believing that. New teeth would have nerves, for one.
  - nsxwolf 7y ago
    Nerves in teeth could be considered a bug and not a feature. The sensations you want (chewing food) transmit mechanically through the jaw. The sensations that the tooth's nerve generate are unpleasant ones - extreme heat, cold, pain, sensitivity.
    - magduf 7y ago
      The pain part can be useful: if you have a tooth infection, that nerve tells you before the infection spreads to your brain. The heat and cold sensations aren't terribly useful though.
- windexh8er 7y ago
  This is simply not true. Composites of today are still more brittle and fragile than human teeth. Also when implants are placed you're removing bone in order to place them. This can, and often does, weaken the placement region. Finally you're at higher risk of sinus perforation during extractions among other, generally permanent, complications. My SO is a DSS who does all of this and if you can keep your real teeth, they're almost always superior. Dr. Seuss had it right.
  - sandworm101 7y ago
    >>> Also when implants are placed you're removing bone in order to place them. Read up on dental technology. Implants are not the cutting edge of anything. The modern trend it towards 3d printing the entire tooth, roots and all. Within a few years there will be no need to anchor to bone. Furthermore, steel is pretty strong. It doesn't shatter. A solid steel (or other metal) tooth, with composite/ceramic root structure, would last more than a lifetime.
naikrovek 7y ago
Pfft that's nothing. When I had testicular cancer, they found an entire molar in that tumor. Apparently I had a type of cancer that just spontaneously grows parts of you inside it. I am ashamed to say that I forgot the name of this type of cancer.
- RyJones 7y ago
  Teratoma[0] [0]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teratoma https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teratoma
  - ganzuul 7y ago
    So it's not at all far-fetched to grow new teeth for humans then. Just need to get it working in the right place.
    - lonelappde 7y ago
      It's self-evident that humans can grow teeth, since we almost all have them, and many women grow extra sets in their uteruses. The devil is in the details of growing them on demand where desired.
      - read_if_gay_ 7y ago
        > many women grow extra sets in their uteruses What.
        deleted 7y ago
        [deleted]
        BurningFrog 7y ago
        It's a pregnancy reference. I hope.
        onei 7y ago
        It's technically correct, but they tend to come attached to a baby :)
PedroBatista 7y ago
Every couple years an article like this comes out, yet nothing of substance actually happens. Maybe when the hens grow teeth, as the french say we'll be able to do that in humans too.
- Causality1 7y ago
  Ahem. http://www.bbc.com/earth/story/20150512-bird-grows-face-of-dinosaur http://www.bbc.com/earth/story/20150512-bird-grows-face-of-d...
- propercoil 7y ago
  This.
- zxcvbn4038 7y ago
  Once I was watching the news, probably back in the 70s - the reporter was Peter Jennings, and he saying that the Soviets had created an aquatic chicken with gills instead of lungs. Never any follow up, never any mention of it again. I’ve always wondered if the people at ABC News were just incredibly gullible, or if the government swooped in to suppress the story.
  - klipt 7y ago
    What's more plausible, the Soviets actually succeeded at such a complex project, and the US government suppressed it so effectively that after the collapse of the Soviet Union there was no evidence left whatsoever. ...or the whole thing was just propaganda in the first place (either Soviet to try claim weird science skills, or US to try claim the Soviets are crazy)?
- technothrasher 7y ago
  Every couple years an article like this comes out, yet nothing of substance actually happens. Maybe if they combine this latest greatest teeth growing technology with the latest greatest new battery technology, they'd be able to get it to market.
- Covzire 7y ago
westurner 7y ago
"Scientists Have Discovered a Drug That Fixes Cavities and Regrows Teeth" https://futurism.com/neoscope/scientists-have-discovered-this-drug-fixes-cavities-and-regrows-teeth https://futurism.com/neoscope/scientists-have-discovered-thi... Tideglusib https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tideglusib https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tideglusib
- minxomat 7y ago
  > Tooth repair mechanisms that promotes dentine reinforcement of a sponge structure until the sponge biodegrades, leaving a solid dentine structure. In 2016, the results of animal studies were reported in which 0.14 mm holes in mouse teeth were permanently filled. Very interesting mechanism.
- 1996 7y ago
  GSK3 inhibitors are interesting, but we don't understand much the subtypes that are likely to exist: "GSK-3 appears to both promote and inhibit apoptosis, and this regulation varies depending on the specific molecular and cellular context." Still, I believe better GSK3i will find a role in autologous bone-marrow grafting therapies to fight senescence: with TERC/TERT overexpression (the opposite of DeGrey WILT ideas) to send new stem cells to the tissues - just like how you can find the donors chromosomes in most tissues of grafted patient.
arkades 7y ago
I already know of at least one company that 3D bioprints custom replacement teeth for patients rather than use implants. It’s already got its patents granted and is transitioning from prototypes to production units, IIRC.
- kbutler 7y ago
  https://www.dentistryiq.com/products/article/16365674/natural-dental-implants-ag-announces-customized-tooth-replacement-system-at-ids-2017?_ga=2.2574832.1764485665.1577459300-1768223949.1577459300 https://www.dentistryiq.com/products/article/16365674/natura... So the bioprinting is an alternative means to construct a replicate tooth (as opposed to CNC milling). Replicate teeth can be used as a less invasive/quicker healing alternative to implants under some conditions: https://www.replicatetooth.com/for-patients/ https://www.replicatetooth.com/for-patients/ "The REPLICATE System can only be used if the root of the original tooth is still in place. Also your dentist will need to evaluate if the surrounding bone structure is healthy enough to accept a REPLICATE Tooth."
  - wmeredith 7y ago
    After digging on their site, you can find the part that says these “replicate teeth” are “medical grade” titanium. They aren’t printing with cells or something. “Bio-printing” is just a marketing term, and a misleading one at that.
    - jagannathtech 7y ago
      Thanks for pointing it... I fell for this
  - jessaustin 7y ago
    ...can only be used if the root of the original tooth is still in place. So, a crown? We already have lots of nice materials and manufacturing techniques for crowns.
    - 7y ago
JoeAltmaier 7y ago
Tooth loss is often because of gum loss. Until we can regrow gum, any new teeth will just fall out again?
- kbutler 7y ago
  Tooth loss also occurs because of injury, decay, and other disease.
- nsxwolf 7y ago
  There are multiple gum grafting techniques that can be used if the area is not too far gone. This is already an issue with dental implants and those are a proven effective option.
zxcvbn4038 7y ago
I’ve been dreaming about this for forty years - ever since I read about some guy that got irradiated by a UFO and a couple months later his teeth started falling out and they found a brand new set growing in beneath them. Wouldn’t it be nice? I think they have made some advances towards this in the UK also though it’s targeted at accident victims needing major facial reconstruction. It would also be interesting to see how long elephants might live if we could regrow their teeth - disease and predators aside that seems to be the limiting factor to their life span at the moment.
rasputinlives 7y ago
https://twitter.com/justsaysinmice https://twitter.com/justsaysinmice
carapace 7y ago
In re: regeneration, see also: "The Body Electric" by Robert O. Becker and Gary Selden https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Body_Electric_(book) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Body_Electric_(book) and "What Bodies Think About: Bioelectric Computation Outside the Nervous System (youtube.com)" https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=18736698 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=18736698

245 points by elorant 7y ago

Was just joking with my dentist about this. As a kid and teenager I was very bad about brushing and only flossed if I had something painful stuck in my teeth, I’ve paid for it with tons of cavities. She said I need to be careful about how hard I floss now because I could damage the fillings and then will need implants for some of them. I jokingly replied that hopefully by the time the need arose science would be able to regrow a full set of teeth for me.

kachurovskiy 7y ago
Brushing teeth is a must but flossing wasn't proven to have measurable effect on teeth health last time I checked.
- csunbird 7y ago
  (Not a dentist) Depends on the brush usage and type of the brush I would say, some brushes are not able to pick up small leftover food between teeth. I find it incredibly useful to floss before sleeping, since that is the time where you are guaranteed to not eat or drink anything for a long time, not giving any chance for bacteria to grow.
  - Ididntdothis 7y ago
    I have a Waterpik and also do oil pulling with coconut oil almost every day. Especially with the coconut oil the dentist noticed a difference in gum health even without me telling him.
    - manmal 7y ago
      How long do you pull? Is 2m enough?
      - Ididntdothis 7y ago
        Ten minutes. At first I hated the oil but now I kind of like it.
    - adrianN 7y ago
      Last time I checked there was no evidence that oil pulling did anything that normal mouth wash couldn't do better.
      - Ididntdothis 7y ago
        For me it feels different , less aggressive. It’s also cheaper. But whatever works for you, do it.
    - forgetfulusr 7y ago
      the waterpik is the most useful tool I found this decade. I think I have become over-reliant on it. My teeth barely have any space between them, so I always end up tearing the regular string floss, and I would never be able to reach/cover so many parts of the mouth without a waterpik/ water flosser. Had not heard of oil pulling, thanks!
      - shortandsweet 7y ago
        Do you find it more or less effective than regular flossing? I've been looking for alternatives to plastic picks/floss. Also they seem to be damaging my gums as I floss too hard
        Ididntdothis 7y ago
        That’s just me but I am fairly certain that the Waterpik benefits my teeth and gums more than flossing. I do both but if I had to drop one it would be flossing.
        forgetfulusr 7y ago
        More effective since I barely did any regular flossing before. I have(or had) sensitive gums and I would constantly bleed and I never developed a proper technique and habit with regular floss. with this, it feels like everything between the teeth gets flushed. The string floss still gets used when I am out (no more bleeding) but even once I get home I use the Waterpik, and I can still see some bits I missed. This sounds like an ad but I have been super satisfied with a Mornwell wireless oral irrigator. ideal usecase for a wireless charging station, since I always worried about it being wet near wirea with the older ones I had. I am still waiting for something bad to happen to me since this has helped me too much.
      - magduf 7y ago
        I use the Crest "Glide" floss; with regular floss, I'm constantly cutting it in half between some of my teeth which are very close together, but the Glide stuff seems to work much better. Strangely, I've had one dentist tell me Glide floss is horrible and I should use some other floss that's "fluffy" (sorry, can't remember the brand/type, I think it was a J&J product), while more recent dentists give me Glide samples every time I visit. I tried that other dentist's recommended floss for a little while, but it was the absolute worst I tried in terms of tearing; it was basically unusable because it just kept getting ripped in half due to my tight contacts.
  - zerkten 7y ago
    It depends on your teeth too. We can appear to have near perfect teeth, but they can still be compromised in a way that flossing can help.
- clSTophEjUdRanu 7y ago
  Do you really need a study to prove you shouldn't have rotting food stuck between your teeth?
  - ekianjo 7y ago
    Why not? You have saliva in your mouth with enzymes that usually get in a number of remote places anyway. Not sure why you would assume flossing is required if there are other mechanisms that already take care of that problem.
    - MichaelApproved 7y ago
      Don't floss for a month and see how well saliva is at breaking down the food between your teeth. There are lots of mechanisms your body has that are adequate enough to get you to puberty, so you can reproduce. If you want better than adequate, you should floss.
      - magduf 7y ago
        Another important factor with these "our bodies already have a natural mechanism..." arguments is that we don't eat the same foods that prehistoric people did when they evolved, in addition to the fact that we now expect to live to 80-100 while still being highly mobile and having all our original teeth if possible. Prehistoric people did live to old age if they didn't get killed by disease or wild animals or accidents or murder, but they probably didn't look too good at that age and probably didn't have many teeth left either.
  - MichaelApproved 7y ago
    You should be asking for the study that proves flossing is beneficial.
- wmeredith 7y ago
  There was a huge (flawed) news story back in 2016 that reported flossing wasn’t worth it and it spread like wildfire because people don’t like to floss. Kind of like how there’s a big “wine/chocolate is good for you” article every couple years. I’ve worked alongside dentists in and off in a marketing capacity. I’ve also been married to one for 15+ years and I can tell you that every dentist in the country can look in your mouth and knows whether you floss regularly or not by the amount of plaque built up between your teeth. And plaque is bad. The NIH published an article shortly after the one I mentioned above to try and combat the misinformation: https://newsinhealth.nih.gov/2016/11/dont-toss-floss https://newsinhealth.nih.gov/2016/11/dont-toss-floss More on Snopes: https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.snopes.com/news/2016/08/06/flossing-isnt-backed-by-science/amp/ https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.snopes.com/news/2016/08/06/... TL;DR: flossing is poorly executed by most people (much like brushing) and the studies on it are flawed, but you’d be hard pressed to find an oral healthcare pro that would recommend against it, and almost all are for it. And no, there is no “big flossing lobby” pushing it.
  - lonelappde 7y ago
    Then why have my dentists over the past decades always asked me how much I floss (I don't) instead of giving me increasingly severe warnings about my tooth damage due to lack of flossing?
    - abootstrapper 7y ago
      “How much do you floss?” In no way implies they think you floss often. It’s actually the reverse. For example, if someone ask “How much do you shower?” It’s a not so subtle hint that you stink, not that they think you shower often.
  - lonelappde 7y ago
    You aren't contradicting parent poster. Snopes conformed that flossing is backed only by the speculation and comical bias of dentists who don't collect data careful. (Healthy gums are assumed to be evidence for flossing, therefore flossing is confused to be evidence for healthy gums).
  - 7y ago
- qrbLPHiKpiux 7y ago
  Dentist here. The main take away from the study is that if you’re not flossing the right way, don’t bother because it won’t do any good. So floss the right way.
  - Covzire 7y ago
    What's your opinion of picks? I use about 3 or 4 a day after meals and always remove a little matter stuck between teeth that no doubt could serve as bacteria buffet. Surely getting rid of those bacterial food sources is better than "bad flossing" right?
    - qrbLPHiKpiux 7y ago
      I personally use Plackers brand picks.
- lr4444lr 7y ago
  It has an effect on gum health, which is far more important for the integrity of your teeth and overall health than some superficial crevices that can be filled. EDIT: Also, we understand the mechanism by which food left in the teeth contributes to gum disease very well. I'm all for demanding high quality epidemiological evidence when we just have a hunch about things, because we deserve at least some correlational power to any claim, but the way in which this data is collected by something as difficult to monitor, annoying to some people, and socially pressured as oral hygiene is deservedly suspect IMHO given our direct clinical knowledge of the health matter in question: it's aetiology, progression, and reversal, on an observable level per organism is very well understood by modern dentistry, AFAIK.
specialist 7y ago
My dentist hates google, internet, science reporting, etc. Patients are always asking about miracle cures. So for years now I poke the bear by excitedly asking about some new treatment I had "just read about" (meaning I just made it up). Stem cells, nanobots, lasers, supplements, etc. It's fun to see him get spun up. He's so serious, earnest. Slow to catch on that I'm poking him. Before he pokes me.

dsukhin 7y ago

This was a very exciting title but a very dodgy article. It references two independent areas of active research but concludes one doesn't work in practice yet and the other (which is buried in this report [0] from Columbia from 2013) works only in rats with stem cells and growth factors. So surely, either the title is misleading about this being viable for humans yet, or there is more progress on the subject beyond what is here and there is a better and more recent source available. Either way, an exciting topic I've also been wondering about for a long time. [0] https://techventures.columbia.edu/news-and-events/latest-news/recruiting-body-help-regrow-new-joints https://techventures.columbia.edu/news-and-events/latest-new...

mrfusion 7y ago

I’ve been seeing articles about this since the 90s. I don’t think it will ever happen. Even if we had the technology, dealing with stem cells would be super expensive compared to doing a bridge or implant. And for whatever reason, dentistry is an extremely conservative field.

helge9210 7y ago

... In mice

rasz 7y ago
@justsaysinmice

sandworm101 7y ago

Why grow new biological teeth? We have the material to create and implant fake teeth that are better in every way. The real question should be when will it become more practical to simply replace a tooth rather than fill/cap/drill to save the biological tooth.

whiddershins 7y ago
I have trouble believing that. New teeth would have nerves, for one.
- nsxwolf 7y ago
  Nerves in teeth could be considered a bug and not a feature. The sensations you want (chewing food) transmit mechanically through the jaw. The sensations that the tooth's nerve generate are unpleasant ones - extreme heat, cold, pain, sensitivity.
  - magduf 7y ago
    The pain part can be useful: if you have a tooth infection, that nerve tells you before the infection spreads to your brain. The heat and cold sensations aren't terribly useful though.
windexh8er 7y ago
This is simply not true. Composites of today are still more brittle and fragile than human teeth. Also when implants are placed you're removing bone in order to place them. This can, and often does, weaken the placement region. Finally you're at higher risk of sinus perforation during extractions among other, generally permanent, complications. My SO is a DSS who does all of this and if you can keep your real teeth, they're almost always superior. Dr. Seuss had it right.
- sandworm101 7y ago
  >>> Also when implants are placed you're removing bone in order to place them. Read up on dental technology. Implants are not the cutting edge of anything. The modern trend it towards 3d printing the entire tooth, roots and all. Within a few years there will be no need to anchor to bone. Furthermore, steel is pretty strong. It doesn't shatter. A solid steel (or other metal) tooth, with composite/ceramic root structure, would last more than a lifetime.

naikrovek 7y ago

Pfft that's nothing. When I had testicular cancer, they found an entire molar in that tumor. Apparently I had a type of cancer that just spontaneously grows parts of you inside it. I am ashamed to say that I forgot the name of this type of cancer.

RyJones 7y ago
Teratoma[0] [0]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teratoma https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teratoma
- ganzuul 7y ago
  So it's not at all far-fetched to grow new teeth for humans then. Just need to get it working in the right place.
  - lonelappde 7y ago
    It's self-evident that humans can grow teeth, since we almost all have them, and many women grow extra sets in their uteruses. The devil is in the details of growing them on demand where desired.
    - read_if_gay_ 7y ago
      > many women grow extra sets in their uteruses What.
      - deleted 7y ago
        [deleted]
      - BurningFrog 7y ago
        It's a pregnancy reference. I hope.
      - onei 7y ago
        It's technically correct, but they tend to come attached to a baby :)

PedroBatista 7y ago

Every couple years an article like this comes out, yet nothing of substance actually happens. Maybe when the hens grow teeth, as the french say we'll be able to do that in humans too.

Causality1 7y ago
Ahem. http://www.bbc.com/earth/story/20150512-bird-grows-face-of-dinosaur http://www.bbc.com/earth/story/20150512-bird-grows-face-of-d...
propercoil 7y ago
This.
zxcvbn4038 7y ago
Once I was watching the news, probably back in the 70s - the reporter was Peter Jennings, and he saying that the Soviets had created an aquatic chicken with gills instead of lungs. Never any follow up, never any mention of it again. I’ve always wondered if the people at ABC News were just incredibly gullible, or if the government swooped in to suppress the story.
- klipt 7y ago
  What's more plausible, the Soviets actually succeeded at such a complex project, and the US government suppressed it so effectively that after the collapse of the Soviet Union there was no evidence left whatsoever. ...or the whole thing was just propaganda in the first place (either Soviet to try claim weird science skills, or US to try claim the Soviets are crazy)?
technothrasher 7y ago
Every couple years an article like this comes out, yet nothing of substance actually happens. Maybe if they combine this latest greatest teeth growing technology with the latest greatest new battery technology, they'd be able to get it to market.
Covzire 7y ago

westurner 7y ago

"Scientists Have Discovered a Drug That Fixes Cavities and Regrows Teeth" https://futurism.com/neoscope/scientists-have-discovered-this-drug-fixes-cavities-and-regrows-teeth https://futurism.com/neoscope/scientists-have-discovered-thi... Tideglusib https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tideglusib https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tideglusib

minxomat 7y ago
> Tooth repair mechanisms that promotes dentine reinforcement of a sponge structure until the sponge biodegrades, leaving a solid dentine structure. In 2016, the results of animal studies were reported in which 0.14 mm holes in mouse teeth were permanently filled. Very interesting mechanism.
1996 7y ago
GSK3 inhibitors are interesting, but we don't understand much the subtypes that are likely to exist: "GSK-3 appears to both promote and inhibit apoptosis, and this regulation varies depending on the specific molecular and cellular context." Still, I believe better GSK3i will find a role in autologous bone-marrow grafting therapies to fight senescence: with TERC/TERT overexpression (the opposite of DeGrey WILT ideas) to send new stem cells to the tissues - just like how you can find the donors chromosomes in most tissues of grafted patient.

arkades 7y ago

I already know of at least one company that 3D bioprints custom replacement teeth for patients rather than use implants. It’s already got its patents granted and is transitioning from prototypes to production units, IIRC.

kbutler 7y ago
https://www.dentistryiq.com/products/article/16365674/natural-dental-implants-ag-announces-customized-tooth-replacement-system-at-ids-2017?_ga=2.2574832.1764485665.1577459300-1768223949.1577459300 https://www.dentistryiq.com/products/article/16365674/natura... So the bioprinting is an alternative means to construct a replicate tooth (as opposed to CNC milling). Replicate teeth can be used as a less invasive/quicker healing alternative to implants under some conditions: https://www.replicatetooth.com/for-patients/ https://www.replicatetooth.com/for-patients/ "The REPLICATE System can only be used if the root of the original tooth is still in place. Also your dentist will need to evaluate if the surrounding bone structure is healthy enough to accept a REPLICATE Tooth."
- wmeredith 7y ago
  After digging on their site, you can find the part that says these “replicate teeth” are “medical grade” titanium. They aren’t printing with cells or something. “Bio-printing” is just a marketing term, and a misleading one at that.
  - jagannathtech 7y ago
    Thanks for pointing it... I fell for this
- jessaustin 7y ago
  ...can only be used if the root of the original tooth is still in place. So, a crown? We already have lots of nice materials and manufacturing techniques for crowns.
  - 7y ago

JoeAltmaier 7y ago

Tooth loss is often because of gum loss. Until we can regrow gum, any new teeth will just fall out again?

kbutler 7y ago
Tooth loss also occurs because of injury, decay, and other disease.
nsxwolf 7y ago
There are multiple gum grafting techniques that can be used if the area is not too far gone. This is already an issue with dental implants and those are a proven effective option.

zxcvbn4038 7y ago

I’ve been dreaming about this for forty years - ever since I read about some guy that got irradiated by a UFO and a couple months later his teeth started falling out and they found a brand new set growing in beneath them. Wouldn’t it be nice? I think they have made some advances towards this in the UK also though it’s targeted at accident victims needing major facial reconstruction. It would also be interesting to see how long elephants might live if we could regrow their teeth - disease and predators aside that seems to be the limiting factor to their life span at the moment.

rasputinlives 7y ago

https://twitter.com/justsaysinmice https://twitter.com/justsaysinmice

carapace 7y ago

In re: regeneration, see also: "The Body Electric" by Robert O. Becker and Gary Selden https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Body_Electric_(book) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Body_Electric_(book) and "What Bodies Think About: Bioelectric Computation Outside the Nervous System (youtube.com)" https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=18736698 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=18736698