Stem Cells from Baby Teeth: Another nail in the embryonic-stem-cell coffin?

[MCWAY]

I heard about this several years ago. But, it appear that, more and more, scientists are finding stem cell research DOES NOT have to be of the embryonic kind, to make the medical breakthroughs that doctors and physicians seek.

Here's an excerpt:

How did Babytooth Technologies get started?

The story behind the company is really quite interesting. The creation of Babytooth Technologies basically began on or about the same day the National Institutes of Health (NIH) publicly released the discovery of SHED (Stem cells from Human Exfoliated Deciduous teeth). Jason had read an editorial about SHED in a local newspaper and his first thought was: “This is something really positive. This may really help people. I wonder if people can store these cells.”

Interestingly when Jason moved his family to Vermont, he met John, and soon thereafter their search for a Christian church brought them to our fellowship. What’s most interesting is that during the same period of events I was also understanding that the God-centered way to utilize stem cells was through adult stem cells and not embryonic stem cells and was beginning to learn about SHED. We began an investigational group that, to date, includes several leading medical professionals across the country.

We never would have thought an opportunity quite like this would come along, but knowing that the Lord has prepared all things in advance for us to do, we were able to rest in His guidance and trust in our abilities. We are thankful for the professionals and friends who continue to help pass on our message—most of whom, and not coincidently, have turned out to be Christians.

What are the goals of Babytooth Technologies?

One goal is to raise awareness about these easily accessible, non-controversial stem cells (SHED). We will continue to publicize the current scientific data available, including Phase II neural transplant success (in rats) for Parkinson’s research (discussed later), and also the fact that SHED induces new bone growth and offers the potential for artery, heart muscle, and cartilage regeneration, similar to other adult mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) sources.

We will continue to encourage families who have children with baby teeth (6–8 years old), or teens with wisdom teeth, to preserve their SHED cells, as a form of insurance for future therapeutic use if ever necessary. Some people have said that it is too early to begin storing these cells because of the absence of clinical data for their use in therapies. Having met with Dr. Songtao Shi, the investigator who discovered SHED, and learning about his continuing research, Babytooth Technologies has had an inside look as to the current research in this area. What we can say is SHED offers immense hope for vast therapeutic applications. Due to the maturity, elasticity, and robustness of SHED, we believe it is a valuable source of stem cells that people can now begin to learn about.

Of course our greatest goal is to explore, fund, and inspire research and development for therapeutic uses of SHED. As a company established by Christians, we are interested to see how our progress has been guided throughout. We have recently expanded our team to include an innovative, non-controversial group of scientists that have also been studying SHED, as well as other pro-life sciences. Their 10 years of study includes extensive work with islet cells, the cells which induce the creation of insulin in the pancreas. They also have a long history of working with stem cells from bone marrow and cord blood.

http://www.answersingenesis.org/articles/am/v2/n1/babytooth

[shootfighter1]

I do not understand the controversy about embryonic stem cells.  Everyone interested, please read on:

I met with a stem cell laboratory director 1 month ago and received some great information.  Did you know that embryonic stem cells can be havested from the fertilized eggs that are wasted after in vitro fertilization?  Therefore, if there was a moral objection to ESCs, then the objection should be with in vitro fertilization.  The fertilized eggs that are not implanted are just discarded.  ESCs can be harvested from these eggs that are destined to be wasted anyway.  This is where I break hard from the religious fanatics.

[MCWAY]

I do not understand the controversy about embryonic stem cells.  Everyone interested, please read on:

I met with a stem cell laboratory director 1 month ago and received some great information.  Did you know that embryonic stem cells can be havested from the fertilized eggs that are wasted after in vitro fertilization?  Therefore, if there was a moral objection to ESCs, then the objection should be with in vitro fertilization.  The fertilized eggs that are not implanted are just discarded.  ESCs can be harvested from these eggs that are destined to be wasted anyway.  This is where I break hard from the religious fanatics.

If that can be done with baby teeth, then the issue is pretty much solved. You have a source of stem cells, with NONE of the ethical controversies.

[shootfighter1]

Its not just a fact of getting a stem cell, the earlier the cell is in differentiation, the more you can do with it.  Thats why early embryonic stem cells are far better than derm or bone marrow stem cells.  My guess is that the baby teeth stem cells are not as pleuipotent.

Reference of terms:

Pluripotent stem cells. These are true stem cells, with the potential to make any differentiated cell in the body (but probably not those of the placenta which is derived from the trophoblast). 
Three types of pluripotent stem cells have been found.

     Embryonic Stem (ES) Cells. These can be isolated from the inner cell mass (ICM) of the blastocyst — the stage of embryonic development when implantation occurs. For humans, excess embryos produced during in vitro fertilization (IVF) procedures are used. Harvesting ES cells from human blastocysts is controversial because it destroys the embryo, which could have been implanted to produce another baby (but often was simply going to be discarded).
     Embryonic Germ (EG) Cells. These can be isolated from the precursor to the gonads in aborted fetuses.
     Embryonic Carcinoma (EC) Cells. These can be isolated from teratocarcinomas, a tumor that occasionally occurs in a gonad of a fetus. Unlike the other two, they are usually aneuploid.
All three of these types of pluripotent stem cells

-can only be isolated from embryonic or fetal tissue;
-can be grown in culture, but only with special methods to prevent them from differentiating.


Multipotent stem cells. These are true stem cells but can only differentiate into a limited number of types. For example, the bone marrow contains multipotent stem cells that give rise to all the cells of the blood but not to other types of cells. [Discussion]
Multipotent stem cells are found in adult animals; perhaps most organs in the body (e.g., brain, liver) contain them where they can replace dead or damaged cells.

[shootfighter1]

Nevertheless, we all must be vocal about increasing stem cell research and use.  Its the future of medicine and just amazing.  Using the body to heal itself!

[Colossus_500]

I don't think the argument is within stem cell research itself, but rather the origin of the stem cells.  To date, only adult stem cells have shown to provide the results that the medical community (and researchers) is seeking. 

To some of us, a fertilized egg is the same as conception.  It's most interesting how strong (or weak) the argument becomes based on the terminologies used.