Tooth decay development

It is highly probable that almost any fertilized rat egg cell can be made to develop into a healthy rat with healthy noncarious teeth if its nutrition is adequately cared for during uterine, suckling, and later states. It is likewise highly probable that any fertilized rat egg cell can be made to develop into a rat which will be susceptible to teeth decay if its nutrition is made defective in the appropriate manner. What this "appropriate manner" is, is yet to be discovered. We are again face to face with the problem What metabolic peculiarities (probably augmented nutritional demands) are basic to susceptibility to tooth decay ... 

The considerable list in Table 6.3 illustrates some of the companies that are currently preparing plant-based biopharmaceutical technologies for commercialization. Steps have been taken toward the development and subsequent commercialization of one of these products, currently in Phase 2 clinical trials and known as CaroRx (licensed to Planet Biotechnology Inc., Hayward, CA) a monoclonal antibody designed for treatment of tooth decay by S. mutans is described in the following text. 

A high sucrose diet promotes decay.11 While most people have some trouble with tooth decay, 1 or 2 per thousand remain totally free of caries and seem to be immune. Many factors must affect resistance to caries. For example, individuals vary in the kinds and numbers of bacteria present on teeth and in the structure of tooth enamel.0 Addition of fluoride ion to water supplies at a level of lppm (0.05 mM) is generally believed to reduce the incidence of tooth decay. However, caries has been declining in many developed countries at rates that are the same for water with or without fluoride.p q If teeth escape caries periodental disease, caused by bacteria, is often a major problem for older people.1... 

This chapter describes dental caries (tooth decay) and its causes. Sucrose and other mono- and disaccharides are metabolized to acid (lactate) by bacteria that remain in stagnation areas of the teeth. Rats and hamsters fed a 50% sucrose diet developed a caries-sensitive, predominantly gram-positive microbiota that became caries resistant when the rodents were fed penicillin (Sect. 1). Further studies identified Streptococcus mutans (S. mutans) as the etiological agent. This organism synthesizes an insoluble polysaccharide capsule that is stable and retains lactate at the enamel surface (Sect. 2). The key enzyme, glucosyl transferase, is related to salivary amylase which adheres to oral bacteria and enhances bacterial acid production. The chapter concludes with a discussion of salivary and other factors responsible for the marked variation observed in individual caries experience (Sect. 3). 

Researchers have developed a vaccine that prevents tooth decay in rats. Such a vacdne may one day be available for humans. 

Hypofluoric status, fluorine deficiency in humans, is characterized, along with tooth decay, by the development of osteoporosis (Gabovich and Ovrutskiy 1969). In the first case, acid environment is created by osteo-cytes in the second case, by bacteria populating the surface of tooth enamel. Attention should be paid to the role of bacteria in the development of caries, as disturbed microflora of the mouth cavity seems to be one of its prerequisites. Up-to-date methods of tooth decay prevention (toothpastes, pills) combine the eflfects on the enamel structure and tooth tissue in general, and on the microflora that causes acidity at the points of its location. In this respect, the adaptation of microorganisms to particular fluorine levels is most likely the phenomenon of most significance. 

Consumed in moderate amounts, sucrose poses no health hazards to humans or other animals. Eating excessive amounts of sucrose, however, is related to a number of health problems, most important, dental caries (tooth decay) and obesity. Sucrose is an important factor in the development of tooth decay because it provides the primary nutrient needed by bacteria living in the mouth. Cleaning one s teeth regularly is the best single way of preventing dental caries caused by the consumption of sucrose. Obesity is a problem that develops when a person consumes more foods than needed for normal healthy body function. When those foods are not utilized by the body, they are stored as fatty deposits, resulting in obesity and a number of health problems related to it, such as diabetes and heart disease. 

If dental chemistry continues to progress at the present rate, tooth decay may soon be a thing of the past. Cavities are holes that develop in tooth enamel, which is composed of the mineral hydroxyapatite, Ca5(P04)30H. Recent research has shown that there is constant dissolving and re-forming of the tooth mineral in the saliva at the tooth s surface. Demineralization (dissolving of tooth enamel) is mainly caused by weak acids in the saliva created by bacteria as they metabolize carbohydrates in food. (The solubility of Ca6(P04)30H in acidic saliva should come as no surprise to you if you understand how pH affects the solubility of a salt with basic anions.)... 

In the first stages of tooth decay, parts of the tooth surface become porous and spongy and develop swiss-cheese-like holes that, if untreated, eventually turn into cavities (see photo). However, recent results indicate that if the affected tooth is bathed in a solution containing appropriate amounts of Ca, , and F, it remineralizes. Be-... 

In the first stages of tooth decay, parts of the tooth surface become porous and spongy and develop Swiss-cheese-like holes that, if untreated, eventually turn into cavities... 

Every day, you use products containing substances that were developed and prepared by chemists. Soaps and shampoos contain chemicals that remove oils on your skin and scalp. When you brush your teeth, the substances in toothpaste clean your teeth, prevent plaque formation, and stop tooth decay. Some of the chemicals used to make toothpaste are listed in Table 1.1. 

Microbiolo of the Mouth. Tooth decay does not develop in germ-free animals, but unfortunately this is an unrealistic situation for humans. Decay-promoting bacteria live in the mouth and adhere to the tooth surfaces forming sticky colorless masses called dental plaque. 

Although the requirements for caries prevention and diseases development have been well established from many years of research in the field of cariology, our perception of how tooth decay may be remineralized has expanded substantially in the last decade. 

Mechanical removal of plaque is the most effective measure against plaque-caused diseases, dental caries, and periodontal diseases. Even before the advent of fluoride treatments, it was assumed that a clean tooth does not decay. A toothbmsh is effective in removing dental plaque and, for those individuals who optimize its use, it usually can adequately control plaque. Despite the proven efficacy of mechanical plaque removal, the amount of patient involvement is such that only about 30% of the population in developed countries and considerably less in undeveloped countries can be expected to adequately remove plaque (1). Hence, supplementary measures such as dentifrices and dental rinses are necessary. 

The most common oral condition and dental emergency is dental caries, which is a destructive disease of the hard tissues of the teeth due to bacterial infection with Streptococcus mutans and other bacteria. It is characterized by destruction of enamel and dentine. Dental decay presents as opaque white areas of enamel with grey undertones and in more advanced cases, brownish discoloured cavitations. Dental caries is initially asymptomatic and pain does not occur until the decay impinges on the pulp, and an inflammation develops. Treatment of caries involves removal of the softened and infected hard tissues, sealing of exposed dentines and restoration of the lost tooth structure with porcelain, silver, amalgam, composite plastic, gold etc. 

Lately, May Mellanby and H. Mellanby (1948) have studied anew the correlation between enamel hypoplasia and caries, and the statistics leave little doubt that the hypoplastic tooth, irrespective of the locality in the mouth, can decay more readily and with greater frequency than the corresponding tooth with perfectly smooth surfaces. On other dietaries the correlation may not be significant, as indicated by Marshall-Day s (1944) report of studies in Indian children with well-developed hypoplasia and little caries. 

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