NEWS FROM THE FORSYTH INSTITUTE
140 The Fenway, Boston, MA 02115 ·
617-262-5200 ·
www.Forsyth.orgSeptember
26, 2002
FORSYTH RESEARCHERS REGENERATE MAMMALIAN TOOTH CROWNS
Boston--Researchers at The Forsyth Institute have successfully used
tissue engineering techniques to regenerate mammalian tooth crowns
containing dentin and enamel—a feat that could, one day, lead to a
biological tooth substitute to replace lost or missing human teeth. The
research also suggests the existence of dental stem cells—which could be key
to bioengineering human teeth.
"The ability to identify, isolate and propagate dental stem cells to use
in biological replacement tooth therapy has the potential to revolutionize
dentistry," said Dominick P. DePaola, DDS, PhD, president and chief
executive officer of The Forsyth Institute, the independent research
organization where the work was conducted.
Joseph P. Vacanti, MD, director of the Laboratory for Tissue Engineering
and Organ Fabrication at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and a
co-author, called the work "important" in several respects: "It points the
way for biologic repair in dental disease using the new tools of tissue
engineering. It suggests the existence of stem cells, which could be
important in many areas of dental repair. And, by combining the new science
of stem cell biology with the engineering concepts and techniques of tissue
engineering, it demonstrates that complex structures such as living teeth
can be created."
As reported in the October 1, 2002 Journal of Dental Research, the
Forsyth researchers seeded cells obtained from immature teeth of sixth-month
old pigs onto biodegradable polymer scaffolds and placed them in rat hosts.
Within 30 weeks, small, recognizable tooth crowns
had formed.
These crowns contained dentin (a bone-like layer); odontoblasts (cells
that secrete the proteins that form dentin), a well-defined pulp chamber;
Hertwig’s root sheath epithelia, cementoblasts (cells that form a
mineralized tissue that covers the roots of the tooth), and, significantly,
a morphologically correct enamel organ.
The Forsyth results, demonstrated in some two dozen experiments,
represent the first successful generation of mature tooth crowns containing
both dentin and enamel. The results also suggest that it may be possible to
grow teeth of a particular size and shape, according to Pamela C. Yelick,
PhD, the principal investigator, an Assistant Member of the Staff at
Forsyth.
MORE
Forsyth—Regenerated Tooth—2
Previous researchers had used alternative approaches to form partial
tooth structures including dentin and pulp, but none had grown complete
structures that included enamel.
The Forsyth team is the first to report using dissociated tooth tissues
(tooth buds enzymatically digested into single cells) combined with polymer
scaffolding (a technique used elsewhere to regrow other bodily human
tissues) to regenerate teeth.
Also of great importance is the discovery that dental stem cells appear
to exist in porcine third molar tissues. "Finding putative epithelial and
mesenchymal dental stem cell populations in mammals suggests that similar
cells might exist in human beings," Yelick said.
Yelick predicts that within five years, "we will know whether dental stem
cells can be manipulated to bioengineer teeth. To generate a human tooth
might take an additional five to ten years."
The Forsyth research was supported, in part, by the Center for
Integration of Medicine and Innovative Technology, a nonprofit consortium of
academic and research institutions, and by the Harvard School of Dental
Medicine Center for Craniofacial Tissue Engineering. "It is very gratifying
to see the vision to create a biologic tooth come into view," said HSDM Dean
Bruce Donoff, DMD, MD. "The potential of this advance is enormous and could
have a far-reaching impact on patient care."
The research, described in "Tissue Engineering of Complex Tooth
Structures on Biodegradable Polymer Scaffolds," was conducted at The Forsyth
Institute, an independent, nonprofit research organization focusing on oral,
craniofacial and other biomedical sciences.
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Principal Investigator Pamela C. Yelick, PhD, Assistant Member of Staff
in the Department of Cytokine Biology at Forsyth, led the scientific team.
She is also an instructor at the Harvard School of Dental Medicine (HSDM).
The research team included: lead author Conan S. Young, PhD, research
associate, and John D. Bartlett, PhD, associate member of the staff, both of
The Forsyth Institute; Shinichi Terada, MD, and Joseph P. Vacanti, MD, both
of the Departments of Surgery at MGH and HMS; and Masaki Honda, DMD, PhD, of
the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Nagoya University School
of Medicine in Nagoya, Japan.
Note to journalists: Visuals, background material and copies of the
article may be obtained by calling 617-262-5200 ext. 276, or by e-mailing
anitaharris@attbi.com
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