A COMPOUND that causes bad breath could help fuel the development of stem cells from dental pulp.
Hydrogen sulphide, which smells of rotten eggs, appears to help tooth stem cells change into liver cells, which could prove a valuable treatment for patients, researchers found.
Scientists took stem cells from dental pulp and split them into two groups. One was incubated in a hydrogen sulphide chamber and the other was a control.
The study, published in the Institute of Physics' Journal of Breath Research, suggested pure liver cells could be produced in high numbers.
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