#18 Revolutionizing Dental Treatment with a Dream "Teething Pill"

After graduating from the Faculty of Dentistry at Tokushima University, I worked in the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery at Kyoto University Hospital before entering graduate school to study molecular biology under the guidance of Professor Shigetada Nakanishi. At that time, while working as a dentist once a week, I devoted myself to research without taking weekends off. He then went to the United States to study and engaged in research on developmental biology of the maxillofacial region. After returning to Japan, he returned to Kyoto University Hospital and continued his research on tooth regeneration while obtaining government research funding. From 2018, through an incubation program in which Kyoto University supports the commercialization of research results, he was able to narrow down the final candidate compounds and decided to start his own business in May 2020 with the aim of commercializing a tooth-growing drug.

To be honest, when it came to research on drug discovery, I had assumed that pharmaceutical companies would commercialize the results in the laboratory, but my guess was off. Recently, drugs to regenerate bone lost due to periodontal disease have begun to appear, but until now, there were almost no drugs specifically for dentistry. Pharmaceutical companies often told us, "We don't do dental drugs," and there was no prospect of an offer. We felt that we had no choice but to develop the drug ourselves, so we decided to start our own business.

Having started the company, I strongly feel that we are able to gather not only money but also technical support. In the case of our business, we needed to rally a variety of people, including those who are good at safety testing, those who are good at filing intellectual property applications, those who are good at obtaining antibodies, and so on. In such situations, I think the unique strength of a company is that it can receive technical support as soon as it enters into a contract.

These days, I enjoy switching things up. For example, when I work as a dentist, my mind is all about the teeth of the patients in front of me. I often learn the importance of teeth again from my patients. Dental care itself is ever-evolving, so I also enjoy being able to update my skills while practicing.

In raising my children, I work with my family. Thinking back, I remember my mother being very shocked when she found out about my jawbone disease. I thought, "It wasn't my mother's fault..." But now that I am a mother, I feel I understand even more why my mother felt responsible. Even in clinical practice, many parents are disappointed when they find out that their child is edentulous. I feel my back is lifted as I hope to create a remedy that will be a ray of light for such people.

Specifically, systemic administration of the drug causes teeth to grow where there is a dental crest. We are currently conducting pre-clinical safety studies, a pre-clinical stage of clinical trials, in mice and monkeys using a neutralizing antibody, a new drug candidate. 2024 is the year we intend to begin clinical trials as a treatment for congenital edentulism.

When we started our business and launched our website, we began to receive a great number of comments from patients asking when the clinical trial would start and whether they would like to participate in it. I can feel that many patients are waiting for the teething drug, and I would like to deliver an effective drug as soon as possible.

We aim to create a society where people are not afraid of losing their teeth through periodontics. Currently, some patients are trying to keep their permanent teeth even though they have advanced periodontal disease and inflammation. If a third tooth can grow with teething medication, we hope to realize a world where people can chew with their own teeth for a long time, even as they grow old. We have already confirmed that a ferret can grow a third tooth, and we would like to study the possibility.

There was a time when I myself hesitated, wondering if I could really do it or if I was the right person for the job. But now I think that if you are going to hesitate, just give it a try. Please have the mindset of "regret after doing it rather than regretting not doing it.