Amino acid helps protein grow tooth enamel
Posted on Oct 21 , 2011 • 4 Comments • Print
Proline, a simple amino acid that recurs at the centre of proteins found in tooth enamel, makes teeth stronger and more resilient, according to a new research.University of Illinois-Chicago (UI-C) researchers compared proline repeats in amphibian and animal models and discovered that when the repeats are short, such as in frogs, teeth will not have the enamel prisms that are responsible for the strength of human enamel.
Conversely, when the proline repeats are long, they contract groups of molecules that help enamel crystals grow.
“Proline repeats are amazing,” said study leader Tom Diekwisch, professor and head of oral biology at the UI-C College of Dentistry.
The new discovery, Diekwisch said, will give new clues to engineer tooth enamel. “We hope that one day these findings will help people replace lost parts of the tooth with a healthy layer of new enamel.”
Diekwisch’s team discovered that the longer the stretch of proline repeats, the more the protein bubbles contracted. The study also showed that the smaller protein bubbles were associated with longer enamel crystals, he said, according to a university release.
The findings were published in the Monday online version of the PLoS Biology.
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User Comments ( 1 )
Show All • Post CommentThanks for the comment. I tried to post a chart from the Reed Research Reactor to valsiluy demonstrate those radiation comparisons, but WordPress didn't like the file. Maybe x-rays made it too hot to handle. There is a lot of resistance to x-rays from some patients. I have had a few patients who initally had no decahy on a particular tooth, and two years later had decay that infected the pulp of that tooth, and caused an abcess in the bone. The decay most likely would have shown up in the in-between year with an x-ray and could have been treated with a filling. At the abcess point, an extraction or a root-canal is usually needed.I have had patients with similar abcesses who have ended up in the hospital, some on the verge of death. X-rays are useful tools and should be used judisciously.
5 weeks ago.
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