Stem cells from children's milk teeth are being frozen by a UK company as an insurance policy against diseases they might develop when they grow up.

 

UK's first tooth bank

It's Britain's first tooth bank and parents are signing up for the unique storage scheme run by BioEden in the north west of England.  They pay £950, plus an annual £90 service charge. When their child's tooth falls out they pack it up into a special container which is then couriered speedily to the company's lab in Daresbury, Cheshire.

The company was helped on its way by UK Trade and Investment (UKTI), the joint department run by the FCO and the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform. UKTI has a lead role within government for developing trade overseas and inward investment in the UK.

Stem cells in milk teeth

BioEden was started in 2007 by dentist David James, the company's CEO, after he found research on the internet by Dr Shi, a cellular biologist at the National Institute of Health in the US, who had discovered stem cells in his young daughter's milk teeth.

So impressed was James that he got straight on to the Institute to discuss how he could bring the technique to Europe. And with the help of a dozen investors, he set up Bioeden which complies with strict European regulations from the Human Tissue Authority.

Harvesting the cells

Says David: "We've had teeth arriving from Kuwait, India and Italy. As long as we get the tooth within the 48 hours and it's healthy we can harvest the cells."

BioEden extracts the stem cells from the teeth and then freezes them. One set of cells is stored in Cheshire, the other in a secret lab in case of an accident like a fire at the main site.

Still in its infancy

Stem cell research is still in its infancy but by the time this generation of BioEden children are grown up, it could well be possible to use their cells to treat diseases they might develop ranging from Alzheimer's to multiple sclerosis to Parkinson's.

There is no risk of rejection, of course, because the cells are taken from the patient's own body.

New facilities in the Middle East and Australia

The company now feels ready for its next big step and is expanding beyond the UK and setting up new facilities in the Middle East and Australia.

Clive Marshall, a director of BioEden, says that without the help of UKTI this expansion would not have happened so smoothly and rapidly. "The commercial risk and costs we would have faced on our own in trying to set up new facilities in an unknown country thousands of miles away would have been enormous," he says.

Expanding globally

"UKTI showed us how we might expand globally," Clive continues. "BioEden already provides a a service throughout Europe and to the Middle East but to grow effectively we needed to establish facilities in key overseas markets."

Supporting research

As well as freezing and storing stem cells BioEden supports research in this exciting new science at the UK Centre for Tissue Engineering based at Liverpool University.

But what about the children who have missed out on the tooth fairy?  Well they get a certificate and David James says that "parents tend to give them a pound and tell them there's a very special tooth fairy who is going to look after them in the future".

Have a look at BioEden's video which describes in detail the work they do.

And read more about how our with UKTI work supports the UK economy.