Organ Regeneration Based on Developmental Biology

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responsiveness to noxious stimuli (Figs. 5.6 and 5.7). Our bioengineering technology
for fully functional tooth regeneration could contribute to the realisation of whole-
tooth replacement regenerative therapy in the future (Nakao et al. 2007 ; Ikeda et al.
2009 ; Oshima et al. 2011 ).

5.6 Future Perspectives for Tooth Regenerative Therapy

The progress made in regenerative technology is remarkable, and many patients
expect the practical application of tooth-tissue repair and whole-tooth regenerative
therapy. To address the future clinical application of tooth regenerative therapy, one
of the major research hurdles remaining is the identification of appropriate cell
sources (Ikeda and Tsuji 2008 ). These cell sources may be optimised by using the

T

T

T

T

No stimulation

T

T

scale bar : 100 μm

T T T

Pulp exposure

2hrs

Orthodontic movement

2hrs

Natural tooth

Eruptedbioengineered tooth

EngraftedBioengineeredtooth unit

Fig. 5.7 Perceptive potential to mechanical stress in bioengineered teeth. Natural and bioengi-
neered teeth were analysed by c-Fos immunoreactive neurons in the medullary dorsal horns of
transplanted mice after 0 h (no stimulation, control; left column) and 2 h of stimulation via orth-
odontic movement (centre column) and pulp exposure (right column). c-Fos (arrowhead) was
detectable after these stimulations were applied in natural (upper), erupted bioengineered tooth
(middle) and engrafted bioengineered tooth units (lower)

5 Functional Tooth Regeneration