When Thimios Mitsiadis was young, he wanted to be an astronaut. As he got older, he thought he would like to become a musician. Later, he considered becoming a priest. But both of his parents were in education, and the house he grew up in was full of books. Now, he too is an academic. The environment he grew up in nudged him along a particular life path.
Now as a developmental biologist at the University of Zurich, Mitsiadis leads a team of researchers who recently discovered that interactions with different environments, rather than inherent cellular differences, may drive the unique behaviors of stem cell populations in human teeth. The findings open new pathways for dental therapy, including cell-based regenerative treatments.
Beneath the hard enamel crown of teeth lie layers of deeper tissues, each with distinct primary functions and behaviors. At the tooth’s core is dental pulp, a highly vascularized ...
