Tooth good to be true: Japan to soon human trial a medicine that can naturally regrow any lost teeth!

Growing up with modern science, you begin to look at the world like a magical place. Break a bone in two? Just cover the fracture with metal and feel like Wolverine! Your entire hand got chopped off in a freak accident? Best leave it in ice so the doctors can sew it back later, easy-peasy! Now, imagine my surprise and horror when I discovered that if I end up breaking my adult teeth, there’s still no actual way of getting them back.

If a part of your tooth chips off, your dentist will attempt to stick the pieces back together with some type of adhesive. If too much of your tooth breaks off, they will grind it down further before putting a metal, resin or ceramic dental cap on it. Either way, you’ll never get to nom on stuff with all of your natural chompers ever again; something that really does not sit right with me, for some reason.

Therefore, if you do plan on getting into a bar brawl, you might want to wait for a few more months before potentially getting your teeth knocked out. In an unprecedented medical breakthrough, the world's first human trial of a drug designed to regenerate real teeth is set to commence in just a few months. If successful, the therapy could become commercially available as early as 2030.

The clinical trial, led by a team from Kyoto University Hospital, is scheduled to begin this September and will continue through August 2025. It will involve 30 male participants aged 30-64, each of whom is missing at least one molar.

Following this initial 11-month trial, the researchers plan to extend the study to younger patients aged 2-7 who suffer from congenital tooth deficiency, a condition affecting about 1% of the population. This phase will focus on children missing at least four teeth, with recruitment already underway. Looking further ahead, the team intends to expand the trial to individuals with partial edentulism, or those missing one to five permanent teeth due to environmental factors.

"We want to do something to help those who are suffering from tooth loss or absence," explains Katsu Takahashi. "While there has been no treatment to date providing a permanent cure, we feel that people's expectations for tooth growth are high."
How does it work?
The innovative drug works by deactivating a protein that normally suppresses tooth growth in our body. This is expected to trigger new bone formation, helping the teeth grow back. In animal models, this approach has not only generated new teeth but also strengthened the existing bone structure.

The potential impact of this therapy is immense," Takahashi stated. "If successful, we could offer a permanent solution to tooth loss within the next six years."

As the world watches with anticipation, the potential of this groundbreaking treatment brings new hope to millions suffering from tooth loss. Should the trials prove successful, the future of dental care might soon include the natural regrowth of teeth, transforming the lives of countless individuals around the globe.