Unlocking the potential of stem cells in teeth
When David James, a cosmetic dentist from Chester, Cheshire, first came across the concept of harvesting and storing stem cells from deciduous teeth on the internet, he had no idea that only a short while later, he would become the CEO of BioEDEN Limited, a European stem cell bank.
After extensive research and contact with the team of scientists who first discovered the presence of stem cells in teeth, he soon saw the potential for a storage facility to store these cells. He visited BioEDEN in Austin,Texas, an FDA registered facility, and bought the license to provide the service in the UK and Europe. “Mesenchymal stem cells are very powerful with great therapeutic potential. As a result I thought it would be good to bring BioEDEN over to the UK. I felt that as a dentist, I would be a good person to do it,” he explains.
Today, BioEDEN Group, the result of a merger between its European and American companies, is based at the Daresbury Innovation Centre in Cheshire, UK, with commercial partners in key locations around the world. Joint ventures and collaborative projects are already underway with a hospital in Thailand and firms in Australia, Dubai and India. “Two years ago BioEDEN didn’t exist; now we are a global brand,” he says, adding that interest is growing rapidly in this field.
More than 500 individual children have cells stored in the BioEDEN banks to date. To stay at the forefront of stem cell therapy development and applications, the company has established a professional advisory board, consisting of key opinion leaders in novel research on treatment of disease and injuries, including stem cell therapies, drug development. Board members include Dr Magdi Henein Hanna, Director of the Pain Research Unit at Kings College Hospital in London, Dr Alan Boyd, Chairman of the Specialist Advisory Committee in Pharmaceutical Medicine at the Royal College of Physicians and Dr John Hunt, Head of Clinical Engineering Division at the UK Centre for Tissue Engineering at the University of Liverpool.
As a dentist, what drew you to BioEDEN?
David James: I find it fascinating, because it is an interplay between dentistry and general health. Dentistry nowadays is a modern and cutting edge subject and this is a very interesting part of that. It is nice to think that through a dental connection we might be able to help cure rare and life-threatening conditions. It is an interesting role to be involved in a patients’ overall health.
Also, through deciduous teeth it is a very natural way of acquiring stem cells. Stem cell acquisition in the past has had a very murky background. It is a clean and ethical way to obtaining stem cells and I like the positive dental connection to it.
How can donors access their stored cells?
David James: If a donor becomes ill, the physician will be informed that the patient has stem cells in storage. The BioEDEN storage facility is registered with the human tissue authority (HTA) which means the cells are fit and proper in the way they’ve been stored and can therefore be used for medical therapy anywhere in Europe and on the NHS in the UK. Transport of these cells from storage to a medical facility is very important and will require an expert carrier, similar to that of human transplant organs.
What cures for disease would you like to see emerge from stem cell research?
David James: The cells harvested from deciduous teeth are mesenchymal cells. What we know from our work with the UK Tissue Engineering Group, is that these cells are going to be very effective in growing organ and tissue structure. Hopefully, this could lead to the repair of nerve tissue for spinal cord injuries which are currently incurable.
There is evidence that these cells can be used to grow Islets of Langerhans, pancreatic cells destroyed by Type 1 diabetes. Although not life-threatening, this widespread disease affects the quality of life of many and it would be great if stem cells could offer a cure.
How far off is stem cell therapy from being integrated into medical practice today?
David James: It is already used in areas such as bone marrow transplants, which is a well documented and successful form of stem cell therapy. King’s College in London are successfully treating heart attack patients with stem cells at the moment. At the University of Newcastle, researchers have grown liver tissue while scientists in Japan have grown new tissue to repair jawbone and facial tissue of maxillofacial trauma patients.
Worldwide there are about 9000 clinical trials taking place involving stem cells, each of which will bring out new treatment protocols to use the cells in a particular way to get a particular result. In less than 10 years I expect a lot of these therapies will be proven safe and widely available for patients. Stem cells also contribute to gene therapy and genetic medicine. The safest way to introduce gene therapy is through autologous stem cells. In future, stem cells will be used for a wide range of treatment beyond the ‘traditional’ stem cell therapies.
Our job is to provide clinicians with stem cells in the proper condition in order for the therapies to be effective for treating patients.
What are your goals for BioEDEN over the next 5 years?
David James: The aims are to maintain our quality of service here and throughout the world. We have very high standards in order to work with the HTA and FDA and we would like to be able to operate at the same level worldwide. Future developments with international partners include licensing out the patented stem cell storage protocols to allow for larger storage banks.
Read the article as it appeared in Apex