'Maybe we can regenerate our own teeth': Manitoba scientists exploring abilities in tropical fish

Zebrafish are seen at the Rady Biomedical Fish Facility at the University of Manitoba on Nov. 18, 2024. Scientists are researching how the fish regenerate body parts following injuries, and how it can help humans dealing with injuries (Danton Unger/CTV News Winnipeg).

Tropical fish hold clues that two Manitoba scientists believe could help unlock regenerative abilities in humans—like the ability to regrow your own teeth or repair your own brain following an injury.

This is the kind of work that is going on inside the University of Manitoba’s new $2.5 million Rady Biomedical Fish Facility at the Rady Faculty of Health Sciences.

Doctors Devi Atukorallaya and Benjamin Lindsey are spearheading the efforts inside the facility—the most advanced in the prairies. It houses about 2,000 zebrafish and 250 Mexican tetras.

“We're trying to understand what's unique, what's special about the fish that lets them do this,” said Lindsey, a neuroscientist and assistant professor studying the zebrafish’s ability to regenerate tissue after trauma.

“We're interested in how the brain or the spinal cord can repair after injury, and unlike mammals, these animals can actually do that.”

Benjamin Lindsey (centre) examines a tank of zebrafish at the Rady Biomedical Fish Facility at the University of Manitoba on Nov. 18, 2024. Scientists are researching how the fish regenerate body parts following injuries, and how it can help humans dealing with injuries (Danton Unger/CTV News Winnipeg)

Lindsey said this could one day help treat brain injuries or diseases.

“Ultimately, the hope is to learn some of these clues from these fish. And hopefully, whether it's at a genetic level or other, we can apply that to human health down the road.”

Atukorallaya, an associate professor of oral biology, is exploring how these regenerative abilities could help in the dentist office.

Mexican tetra and zebrafish can grow and shed multiple sets of teeth. She said about 70 per cent of the genes are the same as human genes. She believes these similarities could pave the way to regenerative dentistry.

“Maybe we can regenerate our own teeth,” she said. “We lose the teeth, but no problem; here we have a new tooth that can be replaced.”

The new Rady Biomedical Fish Facility was unveiled on Monday.

Benjamin Lindsey (left) and Devi Atukorallaya examine a tank of zebrafish at the Rady Biomedical Fish Facility at the University of Manitoba on Nov. 18, 2024. Scientists are researching how the fish regenerate body parts following injuries, and how it can help humans dealing with injuries (Danton Unger/CTV News Winnipeg)