According to the latest research in dental health and upkeep, it may be possible to grow tooth enamel. This could completely revolutionize the way dentists treat those with tooth damage and decay.
After all, regrowing natural teeth could be one of the best options of all. It would mean that the days of whining drills and shrieking patients are nearly over at last.
Researchers studying tooth development have singled out a gene that controls the growth of our surface substance, the hard outer layer of teeth, which cannot grow back naturally once it is damaged by tooth decay.
The discovery sheds fresh light on the way they form, and could pave the way for new dental treatments.
In this way, they could that heal decayed teeth by regenerating a layer of enamel, making traditional drilling and filling obsolete. Scientists found the gene after noticing that mice born without it grew teeth with no shell covering.
The enamel in our mouth is the hardest tissue in the body, and begins to form when humans are still embryos.
Specialized cells called ameloblasts in the bud, make enamel by releasing calcium phosphate minerals into a protein "scaffold," that shapes them into tightly packed rods of this tough substance.
By the time our teeth are fully formed, they erupt from the gums and the enamel-forming cells die off, making it impossible for them to regrow new covering later.
For most animals, this is not a problem. However, in humans, the large amount of sugar and starch in our diet is turned into acid by bacteria living on our surfaces of our mouth.
It slowly dissolves the outer layer, creating a hole in the tooth. If untreated, cavities can cause life-threatening infections in the body, not to mention great pain.
If scientists can perfect a way of regrowing this substance and replacing the drill in the dentist's surgery, it could have important knock-on effects for patients. In 2005, a survey by researchers found that five percent of patients were extremely anxious about visiting the dentist/
Half were so afraid that they either cancelled their appointment, or failed to show up. By missing appointments, patients risk turning a fairly minor dental problem into a serious risk to their health.
Last year, a poll conducted by researchers found that parents passed on their fear of dentists to their children, by telling them they were being brave or had nothing to fear from a visit.
Despite rates of cavities falling for the past thirty years, almost half of children and adolescents and more than fifty-five percent of adults in the UK are still affected by holes in their teeth.
One expert on tooth development suggested that if we could find some way of growing ameloblasts that make enamel, we can find a way to repair our incisors when damaged. Any gene like this is clearly worth understanding.
The more we learn about it, the more we can use the information to make significant advancements.
Much of this work is focused on using stem cells to regenerate growth, but the introduction of the Human Tissue Act had made it difficult to obtain samples from patients, to advance the work.
Researchers fear that they have lost a year's work, due to the fact that they have not been able to get a hold of the right cells. The ones that they do get are often from wisdom teeth that people are choosing to have removed.
Some of the latest research has found that the mice they breed lack a gene known as Ctip2. This gene is crucial for the enamel-producing cells to form and work properly.
By understanding the genetics of tooth development, it may be possible to repair damaged enamel and even produce new teeth in the laboratory.
Some groups have already succeeded in growing the soft tissues inside, but they do not have the hard enamel covering needed to withstand chewing and biting.
After all, enamel is one of the hardest coatings found in nature. It evolved to give carnivores the tough and long-lasting substance they needed to survive.
A lot of work is still needed to bring this to human applications, but it should work. It will change the world of dental health completely.
Author Resource:-
Ronald Pedactor is a former dental assistant and has authored hundreds of articles relating to oral health and cosmetic dentist in Santa Cruz. He has been a guest dental lecturer for over 15 years.
![[Valid RSS feed]](http://www.massagebyben.com/articles/images/icon_Rss.png "XML Feed For RSS"){kind=icon}
Category Rss Feed
Print This Article
Add To Favorites 