World's First Drug To Regrow Teeth Enters Clinical Trials (globalnews.ca) 61
Michelle Butterfield writes via Global News: A team of scientists, led by a Japanese pharmaceutical startup, are getting set to start human trials on a new drug that has successfully grown new teeth in animal test subjects. Toregem Biopharma is slated to begin clinical trials in July of next year after it succeeded growing new teeth in mice five years ago, the Japan Times reports. Dr. Katsu Takahashi, a lead researcher on the project and head of the dentistry and oral surgery department at the Medical Research Institute Kitano Hospital, says "the idea of growing new teeth is every dentist's dream."
In his research, which he's been conducting at Kyoto University since 2005, Takahashi learned of a particular gene in mice that affects the growth of their teeth. The antibody for this gene, USAG-1, can help stimulate tooth growth if it is suppressed -- and scientists have since worked to develop a "neutralizing antibody medicine" that is able to block USAG-1. Now, his team has been testing the theory that "blocking" this protein could grow more teeth. After their successful tests on mice, the team went on to perform similarly positive trials on ferrets -- animals who have a similar dental pattern to humans.
Now, testing will turn to healthy adult humans and, if all goes well, the team plans to hold a clinical trial for the drug from 2025 for children between two and six years old with anodontia -- a rare genetic disorder that results in the absence of six or more baby and/or adult teeth. According to the Japan Times, the children involved in the clinical trial will be injected with one dose of the drug to see if it induces teeth growth. If successful, the medicine could be available for regulatory approval by 2030.
In his research, which he's been conducting at Kyoto University since 2005, Takahashi learned of a particular gene in mice that affects the growth of their teeth. The antibody for this gene, USAG-1, can help stimulate tooth growth if it is suppressed -- and scientists have since worked to develop a "neutralizing antibody medicine" that is able to block USAG-1. Now, his team has been testing the theory that "blocking" this protein could grow more teeth. After their successful tests on mice, the team went on to perform similarly positive trials on ferrets -- animals who have a similar dental pattern to humans.
Now, testing will turn to healthy adult humans and, if all goes well, the team plans to hold a clinical trial for the drug from 2025 for children between two and six years old with anodontia -- a rare genetic disorder that results in the absence of six or more baby and/or adult teeth. According to the Japan Times, the children involved in the clinical trial will be injected with one dose of the drug to see if it induces teeth growth. If successful, the medicine could be available for regulatory approval by 2030.
What a great time to be a rodent! (Score:2, Funny)
NYCers leave pizza out for us, medical scientists create new cures and treatment, etc. Amazing time to be alive!!
I Gotta Call My Dealer! (Score:3)
I love peanut brittle.
COOL! (Score:2)
Also, mice aren't humans. So, I wish you luck.
Re: COOL! (Score:4, Funny)
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No, your research can continue, since some humans are mice.
Re:COOL! (Score:4, Funny)
Well if you studied science, you'd realize that humans can be rats. I am talking about if you studied political science.
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Re:COOL! (Score:4, Funny)
Why should politicians go first?
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Why should politicians go first?
Because they're on the B ark and that one is being dispatched first.
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Hold back the telephone cleaners, we don't need a repeat of last time.
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we should test everything on pigs first! pepper spray, tasers, etc. ACAB
Pepper bacon! Mmmmmm.
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Brings up a new meaning to "ferret face".
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Also, mice aren't humans. So, I wish you luck.
In truth, domestic cattle tend to be a lot closer to us genetically than mice. It's been pointed out over and over through the years that they would be better test subjects for proposed human treatments as their reactions will be closer to our own. However, they don't fit in those tiny cages. Nobody's figured out how to solve that particular issue yet. When they do? It'll be a great day for science!
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Depends on what you're testing. I don't thing ruminants are very close to the human digestion process, rats are closer, and pigs even closer. Pigs are close enough that they're commonly tried for xenografts...here you've got to be close along multiple dimensions, including size.
If you're researching digestion or insulin, rats/mice are a bad choice. Just very convenient. Also just about nobody cares what you do to a rat.
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Very true. But mice aren't ferrets either. Having the same drug work on two completely different orders of mammals bodes well for its broader applications.
Gotta say I'm a little nervous about using children as the first human subjects though - biochemistry is insanely complicated and poorly understood, and injecting development-altering drugs into rapidly developing children seems like asking for complications.
I can see that children would be potentially be more responsive to (re)growing teeth - but if th
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The image shows an extra ferret tooth pushing out where there shouldn't be one, smack in the middle.
The impression is the tooth grows from scratch over months but it doesn't seem they tested on animals with missing teeth.
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I remember seeing another article about this recently, and IIRC what it did was stimulate the buds that normally develop into teeth. It didn't just grow teeth randomly.
Side note: long ago we had a toy poodle whose adult teeth went bad and were all pulled when she was about six years old. Within a few months she grew a complete new set of normal adult teeth (which never went bad, she lived to be 14).
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a few mice teeth might be useful for eating cheese, though.
If only I could figure out where to grow them . . .
The way I read the headline the first time (Score:2, Funny)
I thought "that's really weird" when I first read the headline...
"World's First Dog To Regrow Teeth Enters Clinical Trials"
Next: Regrow Hair? (Score:4, Funny)
Re:Next: Regrow Hair? (Score:5, Funny)
Just spread chia seeds over your scalp.
Even Better (Score:2)
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Don't need either teeth (yet) or hair but I would like to regrow some gum tissue
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Let me tell you about a film called Teeth.
Preparing from now (Score:2)
I will stop brushing from today so that by 2030 I will be ready for this. I'll be able to save up at least $2 a month, over 7 years it adds up.
How painful is it is my first thought (Score:1)
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Bro, a bit of morphine and you won't care at all about the pain.
Haven't you heard about the "opioid epidemic"? Physicians are so frightened of the DEA crawling around for prescribing morphine that it's unlikely for anyone to get any unless checked into a hospital.
It runs in my family to be both lacking in adult teeth and getting crowded teeth. My brothers mentioned how their children have been getting a lot of cavities in spite of regular tooth brushing, another problem in the family gene pool. With people living longer it would be nice to be able to grow a third set
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The problem is that some pretty effective non-opioid painkillers like metamizole are also prohibited in the USA due to very rare side effects, while being perfectly legal (and sometimes even over the counter) elsewhere.
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Really? You should publish a paper about it then since its mechanism of action is unknown. Given that it combines well with actual COX inhibitors, I have some doubts about your explanation, though.
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That may be individual specific. I didn't have that reaction at all. It did dull the pain, but it also made me foggy and torpid...and at the higher doses I was just totally unconscious (or perhaps not forming long-term memories).
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it also made me foggy and torpid...and at the higher doses I was just totally unconscious
Yes, but you didn't care about the pain!
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I doubt it's the regrowing that would hurt, it's the teething which would be painful. But we're not talking root canal bad, and I'm really looking forward to seeing a product line of adult pacifiers. I want this to turn into a fashion trend in retirement homes.
List of wrongs (Score:1)
Re: List of wrongs (Score:2)
Your xrays came back and the good news is you are growing new teeth. Unfortunately they're all growing within your brain tissue. Heres some ibuprofen. Oopsies.
Feels the start of a horror movie (Score:2)
Newest Japanese subculture (Score:1)
Targeted or all? (Score:2)
The way the summary reads (and obviously I'm not going to read the article :)), it sounds like it turns on teeth growing for the whole mouth at once, which would be undesirable. Most people just want to replace one or a few missing teeth.
But yes it could certainly be beneficial for some people missing the majority of their teeth.
The REAL application for this (Score:2)
Here I am, first to point out that growing teeth like this will certainly lead to...
Vagina Dentata
Thank Goodness! (Score:2)
That's dumb (Score:2)
They should be testing on elders, not children, but IANARD (I am not a research dentist).
Pun in the name? (Score:2)
USAGI is Japanese for rabbits. Rabbits (lagomorphs) like rodents, have continuously growing teeth. IIRC.
Totally misleading subject (Score:2)
The subject of the post is totally misleading: the drug does nothing to *re*grow teeth. It only seeks to address a condition where some teeth do not develop to start with.
It's disappointing that such a blunder goes through here...