'Existing dental fillings are toxic to cells': Stem cells used to fight cavities and root canals?

'These materials may provide an effective and practical approach to allow a patient to regenerate components of their own teeth.'

We've all seen the hilarious videos of drugged-up people who just woke from root canal surgery; though the videos provided great laughs, they may become a thing of the past.

LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - Researchers from the University of Nottingham and the Wyss Institute at Harvard University developed a way for teeth to heal themselves.

When native dental stem cells are used in place of tooth fillings, the body triggers a self-healing action and, with help from the stem cells, is able to repair and regenerate dentin.

Dentin is the tissue that forms most of the tooth, beneath the enamel lining.

According to Daily Mail, Dr. Adam Celiz, Marie Curie Research Fellow at the University of Nottingham believes: "Existing dental fillings are toxic to cells and are therefore incompatible with pulp tissue inside the tooth.

"In cases of dental pulp disease and injury a root canal is typically performed to remove the infected tissues. We have designed synthetic biomaterials that can be used similarly to dental fillings but can be placed in direct contact with pulp tissue to stimulate the native stem cell population for repair and regeneration of pulp tissue and the surrounding dentin.

"Our approach has great promise to impact the dental field and this prize provides a great platform to develop this technology further with industrial partners."

If the research can be accurately reproduced and proven, the need for root canals can be abolished and opens the door to more widely-utilized stem cell repair.

David Mooney, the Pinkas Family Professor of Bioengineering at the John Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences at Harvard and the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering, explained: "These materials may provide an effective and practical approach to allow a patient to regenerate components of their own teeth."

Dr. Kyle Vining, DDS, Fellow at the Wyss Institute at Harvard University, further stated: "we are excited about the promise of therapeutic biomaterials for bringing regenerative medicine to restorative dentistry."

Dr. Steve Pleasance, Head of Industry at the Royal Society of Chemistry added: "Increasing innovation in the chemical sciences is one of the key elements of the Royal Society of Chemistry's industry strategy."

The group's research won second prize in the materials category of the Royal Society of Chemistry's Emerging Technologies Competition 2016, where each application was judged on the degree of innovation, potential impact and quality of the scientific data.

You can view the study here.

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