NOVEL & NEW: Amusing and Creative Stem Cell Applications

I read with much amusement today, 2 articles -which were on stem cells- but not the stem cells that we usually think about or cover here in this blog. But because of its novelty value I thought I'd dwell on it in this entry.

The first amusing article was about a spa in New York's Upper Manhattan which launched a USD 250 (RM 900) facial treatment named "Frozen in Time" that claimed to use stem cells derived from aborted cow embryos to restore damaged skin.

Note: If you're not a regular spa client, you can get a great regular facial using plant extracts or aromatherapy essences for about USD 50 (RM 130-180) in Kuala Lumpur.

The owner (sounds like an enterprising chinese lady) is capitalizing on the rejuvenating properties of stem cells to attract well-heeled clientele who have tried everything else to, launch her new day spa. A cheeky note in the article said that La Prairie (a Swiss anti-ageing spa) at the Ritz Carlton in New York was not to be outdone and offered caviar facials for USD 270 (also available in KL!).

I've been to La Prairie's spa opening here in KL, the caviar creams come in beautiful bottles were very tempting but the caviar should probably have been eaten for its nutritional value which might have at least had some systemic effect! I'm not sure about what other's think but aborted cow fetuses sounds a little gory to me...

The second article revolves around the launch of a new stem cell bank which explores and pushes the limit of the source of stem cells. A company called BioEden has decided that there is a potential market of parents who wish to bank their children's teeth stem cells. Based on the founding of these stem cells (contribution by his 6 year old daughter) by Dr. Song tao Shi* (who heads the Dental Biology Unit at NIH) in 2003, it appears that they have managed to spin this off as a new business idea.

The cells obtained are purely for autologous use and the company's website indicates that a special kit is required to ensure that the tooth is collected in special solutions (milk based) before it falls out on its own. The bank charges USD 595 per tooth for the initial processing (stem cells are harvested from the tooth pulp and grown to a certain bankable number) and USD 89 for its annual cryogenic fee. The site also reminds you that each child will have 12 teeth... that's 12 chances to bank the stem cells for future use!


IS IT WORTH IT?

Frankly, I think it's a bit of a stretch- parents already feel the pinch parting with cash for baby's cord blood stem cells which is a proven source, so tooth stem cells might be targetting a niche market for now. Until the time that these stem cells can prove that it can grow another set of teeth, there'll be skeptics... and orthodontics!

As for 6 year old teeth, if you decide to do it, at least you can tell your kid that the tooth fairy kept one of them for the same price as a unit of cord blood stem cells in Malaysia.



*Read how tooth stem cells were first found in this article published in the New Scientist in 2003.