Skip to comments.Shell extract helps rebuild pearly whites
Posted on 04/12/2013 8:25:59 PM PDT by neverdem
Researchers in China have shown that the organic component of mother of pearl can help repair damaged teeth, by acting as a template for the mineralisation of tooth enamel.
Tooth enamel is made up of rod-like crystals of hydroxyapatite, a calcium phosphate mineral. It is the hardest tissue in the body, but is susceptible to erosion by food and bacterial acids. Once gone, it never naturally reforms, and cavities must be fixed using manmade materials. Methods of artificially rebuilding enamel often involve extreme temperature, pressure or pH conditions that make them impractical for clinical use.
Researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Fujian Medical University, both in Fuzhou, are working towards a more feasible solution using the natural composite, nacre (mother of pearl), from the inside of mollusc shells.
Nacre is composed of layers of aragonite, a form of calcium carbonate, separated by an organic matrix of proteins and biopolymers called the Water Soluble Matrix (WSM). The WSM acts as a template for aragonite crystal growth during nacre formation, so the researchers thought it might also be able to influence the structure of hydroxyapatite crystals in enamel. They tested this using extracted human molars that had been deliberately damaged with a strong acid.
The teeth were immersed in a solution containing the isolated nacre WSM from mussel shells, along with calcium and phosphate ions, for three days. Scanning electron microscope images revealed that hydroxyapatite crystals with the correct shape and orientation formed on the surface of the tooth. The new enamel was also similar to the real thing in terms of smoothness and hardness. Without the WSM, the crystals that formed were randomly orientated.
Our study demonstrates that WSM is an effective template for hydroxyapatite remineralisation, says Zanyong Zhuang, one of the researchers involved. It is much cheaper and easier to extract than other protein templates, and is a natural agent that would be physiologically safe in clinical restoration.
Zhuang admits, however, that there are many other things to consider when dealing with teeth in situ. Paul Anderson from the Institute of Dentistry at Queen Mary University of London, UK, agreed that further experimentation is needed. This work is intriguing, he says, but the mechanism of enamel growth has been well studied, and the [template] mechanism proposed here seems to contradict that. Clinical enamel repair is still a very long way off.
X Li et al, CrystEngComm, 2013, DOI: 10.1039/c3ce26947g
“Once gone, it never naturally reforms,”
Hope someone can commercialize a process to rebuild enamel. It would be a great advancement.
The United Kingdom could use this badly. Too bad a Labour Government many decades ago outlawed dentistry.
I wonder if it will help this guy...........
Why do you say this is a myth. I realize you may be right. I had decay in a canine tooth. Finally I got a bad toothache and went to the dentist. He had to do a root canal, but there was a lot of calcified material in the root space. I wonder what would have happened if I had been unable to get a root canal, would this calcification have eventually filled the root space? I was taking calcium and other mineral supplements on a regular basis. Have they found recalcified teeth in primitive skeletons?
My guess is that the "process" will be to add it to toothpaste. Seems like the perfect vehicle to me...the mother of pearl component, plus carriers for calcium and phosphate (maybe just calcium phosphate itself). You don't get a huge exposure time for any one brushing, but over a lifetime.........
After all, today you have things like "Prevident" to HARDEN the surfaces of teeth...why not a toothpaste that can actually rebuild them.
if I had been unable to get a root canal, would this calcification have eventually filled the root space?
peak enamel theory
Your body is capable of continual recalcification of teeth. Why doesn't it happen?
1) most toothpastes contain glycerine that coats teeth and prevents calcification that is naturally applied to the outside of a tooth.
2) it requires a diet or supplementation that produces enamel.
If you have further interest, here is a link to a product sold on Amazon as a supplement. You must also switch to brushing with either non-glycerine soap as a substitute for toothpaste, or try very, very hard to find a toothpaste without glycerine.
Good enamel to you!
After this, your homework is to determine why root canals are bad for you...
In a pinch, I have brushed with baking soda.
Do you have an opinion on using baking soda and a supplement?
Aren't you using that latter one on the wrong end of the body ?
What the hell are you talking about?
Did I ask you a question?
During experimental periods of my life, I have brushed with Baking soda and peroxide, or with myrrh and some other herb, I think it was goldenseal. Would those combinations avoid the glycerine problem? Also is the link you provided the only answer to 2), or can you recommend other diet or supplementation to produce enamel?
I do not believe there is glycerine in any of the items you mentioned.
You will require sodium monophosphate. There are a number of companies who manufacture it. I believe the Swanson price is the cheapest. You need about a gram a day in some water. I do not know of another source, but perhaps there is one.
For $8, you don’t have much to lose.
Thanks, I’ll try it and maybe go back to baking powder.
When the shark bites...
I wonder about the nacre (mother of pearl) component. I was told how fragile nacre was (on cultured and natural pearls): never expose it to acid, it will damage the surface. Can you eat a salad with vinaigrette dressing and expect to keep teeth mended with this new process?
Do you have an opinion on using baking soda? - by gleeaikin
Beware - do research... Yes, it makes your teeth & mouth feel real clean & fresh.
However, one forum comment I read said that it is wearing down the enamel on your teeth, and to only use it once a week.
Ixquick the world's most private search engine - fwiw...
Baking soda teeth => There appears to be many positive responses, but I see this one:
Brushing Teeth with Baking Soda - Buzzle **
http://www.buzzle.com/articles/brushing-teeth-with-baking-soda.html - Proxy - Highlight
Brushing teeth with baking soda is touted to be the safest and the cheapest method of teeth whitening. However, chronic use of baking soda is also known to ...
"conduce wearing of teeth enamel. Benefits / Steps and Guidelines vs. Is Brushing Teeth with Baking Soda Bad? ... "
Click the Link! = ... and Vinegar / Strawberry / Hydrogen Peroxide / "baking soda doesn't kill bacteria " / more...
gleeaikin - Please see post 22, for TribalPrincess2U and gleeaikin, and all.