Cerebral Palsy and Baby Tooth Stem Cells (SHED): Nagoya Study and Trial

Summary — Research on dental pulp stem cells from baby teeth (SHED) for cerebral palsy has moved a step forward in Japan. In June 2026, Science Portal, the science news site of the Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST), reported that a Nagoya University team gave human SHED intravenously to rats with chronic-phase cerebral palsy, after symptoms had become established, and observed improvements in motor function and in memory and learning. A clinical trial in children aged 6 to 11 is under way at Nagoya University Hospital. This article puts that news together with two other cerebral palsy stem cell studies published abroad in the past six months, and sets out what has been shown and what has not.

Cerebral palsy and current standard care

Cerebral palsy (脳性麻痺 in Japanese) is a lasting difficulty with movement and posture caused by brain injury around the time of birth. According to Science Portal, it is estimated to occur in roughly 1 in 500 births in Japan. Therapeutic hypothermia is used for neonatal hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy, one of its causes, but it must start within six hours of birth and does not apply to the chronic phase. The article added that about a quarter of babies who receive hypothermia still have a disability. Care in the chronic phase therefore centres on rehabilitation and support, and options aimed at restoring nerve function itself remain limited.

What are SHED (baby tooth stem cells)?

SHED stands for Stem cells from Human Exfoliated Deciduous teeth: mesenchymal stem cells taken from the pulp, the soft tissue inside shed baby teeth. In Japanese they are called 乳歯歯髄幹細胞, and in Korean 유치 줄기세포 or 치아 줄기세포. The team focused on their neuroprotective and anti-inflammatory actions. Because baby teeth fall out naturally, collecting the cells places little burden on the body, and many cells can be grown from a single tooth.

Nagoya University's cerebral palsy SHED study — animal results

According to the article, the group led by Dr Yoshiaki Sato, director of the Center for Maternal-Neonatal Care at Nagoya University Hospital, published the results online in the British journal Stem Cell Research & Therapy. Rats with chronic-phase cerebral palsy, whose neurological symptoms were already established, received human SHED intravenously three times, at 5, 7 and 9 weeks of age.

Because rats show paralysis less clearly than humans, the team used rat-specific tests such as crossing a ladder with uneven rungs and learning to avoid an electrical stimulus. Improvements in motor function and in memory and learning were reported in the SHED-treated rats. SHED were detected in the cerebrum within 24 to 48 hours of administration, and involvement in neurogenesis was suggested. The article did not give the number of animals or the size of the improvement, so the effect size needs to be checked in the original paper.

The ongoing clinical trial and Japan's regulatory position

Science Portal and Mynavi News (9 June 2026) reported that a clinical trial is being conducted at Nagoya University Hospital in children aged 6 to 11 with cerebral palsy, using SHED made from each child's own dental pulp. The articles do not give the trial phase, number of participants or registration number; these can be checked on jRCT, Japan's public clinical research registry.

Dr Sato noted that neurogenesis is expected to occur more readily at younger ages, so earlier treatment may matter. Using a child's own baby teeth is only possible once those teeth fall out, but if a cell product were approved, SHED from another person's pulp could allow treatment of younger children. This is a future possibility only; no stem cell product is approved in Japan for cerebral palsy. Japan's regenerative medicine framework is summarised in our Japan regenerative medicine timeline.

Other cerebral palsy stem cell research abroad — a randomized trial and a bone marrow stem cell plan

Cerebral palsy stem cell research abroad is moving to controlled designs. In August 2026, Scientific Reports published an analysis of a randomized trial by researchers at Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Iran. Seventy-three children with cerebral palsy were assigned to umbilical cord blood mononuclear cells (27), umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells (26) or a sham procedure (20), given once intrathecally, and brain white matter metabolites were compared over 12 months using magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS). In the pre-specified main analysis, neither cell group differed significantly from sham in metabolite changes. Some differences appeared in exploratory analyses by cerebral palsy type and gestational age, which the authors said should be interpreted cautiously.

UMC Utrecht in the Netherlands has registered a randomized trial on ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT07831746) in about 162 newborns with confirmed hypoxic-ischemic brain injury, giving donor bone marrow stem cells (bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stromal cells) into the nose once within seven days of birth and comparing them with placebo. Reported by regenerative medicine news in September 2026, the trial is not yet recruiting and is expected to start in April 2027. Earlier work in this area is covered in our article on cord blood for neonatal encephalopathy.

Research stage and limitations — what is not yet known

Taken together, the three studies show where the field stands. First, Nagoya University's chronic-phase result comes from animal experiments; whether the improvements seen in rats also occur in people must be tested in the ongoing trial. Second, the articles do not include safety data. Third, the controlled Iranian trial had a negative main analysis for imaging measures of brain metabolism. 'An improvement was reported' is not the same as 'an effect was proven'. Our guide to reading clinical trial results and the cerebral palsy stem cell page give more background.

Frequently asked questions

Is SHED treatment for cerebral palsy available in Japan now?

What was reported is a clinical trial run at Nagoya University Hospital under set criteria. It is not an approved treatment; eligibility and recruitment status should be checked in public registries and the institution's own announcements.

Can my child's shed baby teeth be stored for later use?

The trial uses cells made from each child's own pulp, but it is not yet settled what treatments stored teeth may be used for in future. It is better to check the research stage than to rely on the claims of storage services.

How does this differ from bone marrow stem cells or cord blood?

All of these studies use mesenchymal or blood-derived cells, but the cell source, route (intravenous, intrathecal or intranasal) and timing differ. As the Iranian study shows, results can differ by cell type, so direct comparison is difficult.

Conclusion

Cerebral palsy SHED research has reported improved motor and learning function in a chronic-phase animal model, and a trial in children is under way in Japan. Together with a randomized trial abroad and a newly registered bone marrow stem cell trial, the field is at the stage of testing possibilities. The suitability and risks of any treatment are judged by the medical team, and we will update this summary from the original sources as new results appear.

The above summarises published news, papers and trial registrations. University and institute names are given to identify research sources, not to introduce or recommend any medical institution. The suitability of any treatment is decided by the medical team.

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