Unlike reptiles and fish, which usually replace their fangs on a regular basis, it is widely accepted that humans and most other mammals only grow two sets of teeth.
But hidden underneath our gums are the dormant buds of a third generation, according to Katsu Takahashi, head of oral surgery at the Medical Research Institute Kitano Hospital in Osaka.
[…]
Tests on mice and ferrets suggest that blocking a protein called USAG-1 can awaken the third set, and the researchers have published lab photographs of regrown animal teeth.
In a study published last year, the team said their “antibody treatment in mice is effective for tooth regeneration and can be a breakthrough in treating tooth anomalies in humans”.
Waiting for a pharmaceutical company patenting the shit out of this and selling it $500,000 per tooth, and for insurance companies denying covering it because it is “experimental” or “unnecessary”. Fun times in the USA.
Still, there is the rest of the world to be considered where health insurance actually deals with pharmaceutical companies and makes them sell their products with realistic prices.