SA: Baby teeth to fight heart, brain diseases, say scientists

AAP General News (Australia)
04-04-2004
SA: Baby teeth to fight heart, brain diseases, say scientists

By Sam Lienert

ADELAIDE, April 4 AAP - Baby teeth could one day be worth much more than a visit from
the tooth fairy - with scientists confident they can eventually be used to fight heart
failure, Parkinson's Disease and bone cancer.

Researchers at Adelaide's Hanson Institute, a medical research centre attached to the
Royal Adelaide Hospital, have identified teeth as a good source of stem cells.

Stem cells can be developed into any type of specialised cell in the body, opening
up potential uses in repairing damaged organs, such as hearts, brains, kidneys or bone
marrow.

The institute's director, Howard Morris, said teeth had several advantages over other
sources of stem cells, most notably that they could be obtained easily and without controversy.

"It's thought that the best stem cells come from embryos and that of course has all
the ethical issues about harvesting stem cells," Professor Morris said.

"Stem cells in adult tissues can be difficult to get or present in very small amounts.

"(Hanson Institute scientist) Stan Gronthos ... has identified that pulp in teeth is
quite a good source of stem cells and they are very amenable to getting hold of.

"You lose a whole mouthful of them when you are a young child."

Professor Morris said the technology was still years away from being trialled on humans.

"We are still at the point where we are really identifying these cells in a test tube," he said.

"What's yet to be done properly is to put them into animals over a long period of time
and then into humans, that hasn't been explored."

But eventually it could mean organ transplants could be avoided.

"A heart and kidney transplant, you have to suppress your immune system through chemical
treatment, which is not good," he said.

"But if it's your own tooth, it's your own stem cells.

"With the laboratory we could direct them onto various tissues.

"If a person has Parkinson's Disease, you could send the stem cells down the pathway
to the brain cells and deliver them appropriately to the patient."

A person's baby teeth could be put in storage when they fall out and used for medical
purposes later in life, similarly to what is sometimes already done with cord blood at
the birth of a baby, he said.

AAP scl/cmc/de

KEYWORD: TEETH

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