Slashdot Mirror
Using Wisdom Teeth To Make Stem Cells
An anonymous reader writes "For most people, wisdom teeth are not much more than an annoyance that eventually needs to be removed. However, a new study appearing in the September 17 Journal of Biological Chemistry shows that wisdom teeth contain a valuable reservoir of tissue for the creation of stem cells; thus, everyone might be carrying around his or her own personal stem-cell repository should he or she ever need some. Groundbreaking research back in 2006 revealed that inducing the activity of four genes in adult cells could 'reprogram' them back into a stem-cell-like state; biologically, these induced-pluripotent stem cells are virtually identical to embryonic stem cells, opening up a new potential avenue for stem-cell therapy whereby patients could be treated with their own stem cells."
I bet your dentist is a yank.
Yeah... those puppies are worth a few dollars if you know the proper drop location.
In the future, you'll see toothless guys hauling dick on wheelbarrows.
Your genetic datas was probably already overly corrupted from coke and coffee.
Coffee, maybe. The coke just gets snorted though, it never even touches my teeth.
Coke and coffee. How I love my Colombian exports! :)
"He who can destroy a thing, controls a thing." --Paul Atreides, Dune
Due to replication errors there is a possibility the new tooth may grow back EVIL!
"You should always go to other people's funerals; otherwise, they won't come to yours." -- Yogi Berra
Dear Slashdot,
Please stop finding uses for these useless body parts. The day after my appendix was removed I see that they finally discovered a use for the human appendix, and yesterday I get my wisdom teeth pulled.
No more body parts removed for me.
Thanks.
Why would he want an army of cellphones? /duck