A DARESBURY company is the first in the world to store living stem cells from baby teeth so that people can one day grow their own body parts.

The work by BioEDEN, on Keckwick Lane, means that people may be able to use their own cells to help cure broken bones, heart muscle, nerves and skin.

BioEDEN privately assesses and cryogenically stores the tooth cells. Some cells have already been used to grow new bones in humans and whose therapies are being sought across a wide range of conditions, from spinal cord repair to the treatment of diabetes.

Jim Curtis managing director said: “Advances in stem cell research are taking place now.

“Using the cells, which are the body’s repair system, could heal corneas, tendons, ligaments, nerves, muscles, organs ands skin. They are a natural resource and can provide a perfect match.”

For a fee people can register to BioEDEN, which currently holds 2,000 teeth with room for thousands more, and they will be sent a tooth collection kit.

When a tooth comes back to the laboratory, based at Daresbury Innovation Centre, its cells are extracted and examined and Mr Curtis added: “If something happens to that person a few years down the line the cells are there and ready to go.

“This is at the cutting edge of science and technology and we’re looking for people to invest in that.”

Professor John Hunt, for the UK Centre for Tissue Engineering at the University of Liverpool, said: “People can wait until they are ill to store their cells or there is the opportunity to bank deciduous teeth from children in the event that they need them.

“It is very exciting that there is the potential to regenerate tissue rather than repair it. To store is important, it is a kind of medical insurance to have ready and available.”

Cells that are given to BioEDEN may be used by a person as they see fit, whether it is for themselves or for a family match.

Body part making was one of the jobs of the future recently identified by the Science: [So what? So everything] campaign. Find out more at www.direct.gov.uk/sciencesowhat.