The first-ever tooth-growth drug was created by a Japanese pharmaceutical company.
It will undergo clinical trials next year so that it can meet its 2030 market release.
The tooth-growth drug could help people with specific conditions speak and eat properly.
Kyodo News reported that people have “tooth buds” that can grow and become new teeth. Toregem Biopharma made an antibody drug that enables these buds to develop into full-grown chompers.
It’s always great to see scientific discoveries making the impossible possible. Thanks to Toregem, we’ve found a method of growing teeth, helping people with specific conditions speak and eat properly. If clinical trials don’t yield satisfactory results, it would at least provide more insights into how human teeth develop.
How did Japan create this tooth-growth drug?
NDTV reported that Toregem Biopharma will test the tooth-growth drug in July 2024 and offer it on the market by 2030. The company created it to manipulate “tooth buds” in our mouths.
They can become new teeth separate from baby and permanent teeth. However, most of these buds don’t develop and disappear eventually because a protein prevents them from growing.
Toregem’s medicine uses an antibody that inhibits that protein so the buds can turn into full-fledged teeth. In 2018, the pharma firm tested its drug on ferrets because they have baby and permanent teeth like humans.
The trial caused them to grow new pearly whites. Soon, the company will test its tooth-growth drug on kids with anodontia. It is a congenital condition that causes people to have no permanent teeth.
NDTV says the company will inject the children one dose each to promote tooth growth. Also, the news outlet shared a statement from Toregem co-founder Katsu Takahashi.
“Missing teeth in a child can affect the development of their jaw bone. We hope the drug will serve as a key to solving those problems.” Also, company president Honoka Kiso explained on the Toregem homepage the inspiration for the tooth-growth drug. “When I was a junior high school student, I lost two teeth due to a mandibular bone disease and had an inpatient surgery.”
“That experience led me to become a dentist. When I was a college student, I had an implant treatment for a lost tooth. I wanted to study the cause of my illness and how to regenerate lost teeth, so I went on to graduate school in 2008, and since then, I have been involved in research on tooth regeneration by Dr. Takahashi.”
How to take care of your teeth
The tooth-growth drug could help millions speak and eat properly again. However, proper dental hygiene could help you maintain your pearly whites, so you wouldn’t need such a medicine:
- Brush your teeth thoroughly, scrubbing every part of your mouth. Take time removing plaque to prevent it from hardening and causing early gum disease.
- Scrub your tongue whenever you brush your teeth. Otherwise, you may develop other oral health problems.
- Moreover, use fluoride toothpaste to prevent tooth decay.
- Healthline says mouthwash reduces acid in the mouth, cleans hard-to-brush areas, and re-mineralizes teeth.
- Drink more water to wash away sticky and acidic foods in between brushes.
You should also floss to remove little bits of food stuck in between teeth. Healthline adds, “It’s a really a way to stimulate the gums, reduce plaque, and help lower inflammation in the area.”
Overcome flossing difficulties by purchasing specific products like ready-to-use dental flossers. Also, you may try a water flosser. As the name suggests, it shoots a thin stream of water to remove particles in between teeth.
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