Cells May be Capable of Growing Human Bone

Cells May be Capable of Growing Human Bone

Written by Dentistry TodayWednesday, 03 April 2013 10:16

Plans are being made for an innovative study.

The first known human trial using embyronic-like stem cells from adult cells to grow bone cells will be happening soon. The cell technology, referred to as VSEL stem cells, come from adult cells, not fetuses. The distinction is important because it absolves the study from any possible ethical dilemmas.

The research will be conducted by the University of Michigan School of Dentistry and NeoStem, a New York-based company.

The research team believes that these stem cells have the ability to create a minimally invasive method to speed up painful bone regeneration for dental patients and other people that have experienced bone trauma.

The University of Michigan School of Dentistry’s role will be in the area of patient care, while NeoStem will be provide the cells.

Before the teeth are extracted, the researchers house the cells before NeoStem makes sure the samples aren’t tainted in any way. The VSEL stem cells are then separated from the person’s other cells. This ensures that the purest samples are used for the study.

The people in the control group for the study receive their own cells instead of the VSEL stem cells. After the new bone grows, the research takes out a portion of it for studying.

The University of Michigan has taken the necessary steps to file patent protection for the VSEL stem cells.

If this study is successful, it will provide many benefits, including disease treatment, based on the embryonic-like stem cells that will be produced for each patient.