Guess what!  We might be able to grow teeth in a lab!  So no more fillings and dentures!

Scientists found a gene that controls the growth of enamel – the hard outer layer of teeth.  (You develop cavities when the enamel starts to break down, usually from acids produced by bacteria in your mouth.)

Enamel doesn’t grow back naturally, but the discovery of this gene combined with stem cell technology means that we might be able to make real teeth.  Scientists have already figured out how to grow the inner parts of teeth in animals, but not the enamel.  So this new research could be the missing link.

This could also help repair teeth, not just grow new ones.  Wouldn’t it be great if we didn’t have to deal with all that drilling and scraping anymore to fix our cavities?  Or get root canals?  I think I need a root canal right now actually.  I’ve been putting it off.  Oy.

The article.

Thanks to G!  Whose pearly whites are outta sight!

Also, in other random dental news, monkeys floss their teeth with human hair.  Scientists are currently studying where the monkeys learn this behavior from.  They think the monkeys might learn to floss from watching their moms (the monkeys’ moms, not the scientists’ moms, silly).  Go here to read the article and watch the video of them flossing.