Banking stem cells from human exfoliated deciduous teeth (SHED): saving for the future.

Tooth derived cells are readily accessible and provide an easy and minimally invasive way to obtain and store stem cells for future use. Banking ones own tooth-derived stem cells is a reasonable and simple alternative to harvesting stem cells from other tissues. Obtaining stem cells from human exfoliated deciduous teeth (SHED) is simple and convenient, with little or no trauma. Every child loses primary teeth, which creates the perfect opportunity to recover and store this convenient source of stem cells--should they be needed to treat future injuries or ailments and presents a far better alternative to simply discarding the teeth or storing them as mementos from the past. Furthermore, using ones own stem cells poses few, if any, risks for developing immune reactions or rejection following transplantation and also eliminates the potential of contracting disease from donor cells. Stem cells can also be recovered from developing wisdom teeth and permanent teeth. Individuals have different opportunities at different stages of their life to bank these valuable cells. It is best to recover stem cells when a child is young and healthy and the cells are strong and proliferative. The purpose of this review is to discuss the present scenario as well as the technical details of tooth banking as related to SHED cells.