Groundbreaking drug to re-grow teeth set for human trials this September

Less than a year after its success in animals, the world's first drug that can regenerate teeth will begin testing on humans in a few months, News Atlas reported.

The report revealed that this opens the door for the medicine to be available commercially as early as 2030.

Japan's Kyoto University Hospital is set to hold the trial from September 2024 to August 2025, treating 30 males, aged 30-64, who are missing at least one molar.

The intravenous treatment will be tested for its efficacy on human dentition, after successfully growing new teeth in ferret and mouse models with no significant side effects.

"We want to do something to help those who are suffering from tooth loss or absence," said lead researcher Katsu Takahashi, head of dentistry and oral surgery at Kitano Hospital.

"While there has been no treatment to date providing a permanent cure, we feel that people's expectations for tooth growth are high."

After the 11-month first stage, researchers will trial the drug on patients aged between two and seven, who are missing at least four teeth due to congenital tooth deficiency, which affects one per cent of people.

The trial will also extend to those with partial edentulism, or people missing one to five permanent teeth due to environmental factors, a condition that varies from country to country.

The medicine deactivates the uterine sensitisation-associated gene-1 (USAG-1) protein, suppressing tooth growth.

It blocks USAG-1's interaction with other proteins, encouraging bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) signaling, which triggers new bone to generate, according to News Atlas.