
Tooth decay to be a thing of the past? Enzyme responsible deciphered - gasull
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/12/101203101341.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily+%28ScienceDaily%3A+Latest+Science+News%29
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pierrefar
Well, there is more to plaque and thus caries than just one enzyme no matter
how much it gets hyped up. I've done quite a bit of research on this and the
short answer is that it is a complex interaction between many different
bacteria (a large percentage of which we cannot grow in the lab) and the human
host. Yes different genetics seem to be make people more or less resistant to
caries and different habits play a key role. Also we know of some bacterial
genes that when knocked out result in less or no plaque in the lab, but again,
it's only one type of bacterium. In the mouth, if you somehow managed to
(legally, ethically, and technically) introduce such mutant bacteria, it is
likely that another one will produce the plaque and you're off again. It is
just not easy to fix.

So trying to spin that this one enzyme from only one type of bacteria found in
plaque is responsible for caries and that it is the nail that holds this
complex in place is a bit premature and silly.

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Groxx
> _Just add that substance to toothpaste, or even sweets, and caries will be a
> thing of the past._

Until we inevitably discover that it causes cancer, or lupus, or rabies or
something. Can you _imagine_ the advertising push if / when this does get
added to candy bars?

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tocomment
What are caries?

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Groxx
I had to look it up too. I've _never_ seen/heard that word before, and don't
expect to again.

    
    
      car●ies |ˈkerēz|
      noun
      decay and crumbling of a tooth or bone.
      
      ORIGIN late 16th cent.: from Latin.
    

From New Oxford American Dictionary.

~~~
shykes
Interesting. In French it's the regular word for cavities.

~~~
slug
likewise in portuguese, spanish, italian, etc :) but the latin origin of the
word clearly explains why that's the case.

~~~
eru
And German.

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gxti
The answer to a question in a headline is always the null hypothesis. In this
case, "no".

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hugh3
While I'm sure there must be exceptions out there somewhere, that's a pretty
good rule of thumb.

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yread
_The crystal structure has revealed that the folding mechanism of the protein
is unique. The various domains of the enzyme are not formed from a single,
linear amino acid chain but from two parts that assemble via a U-shaped
structure of the chain; this is the first report on such a folding mechanism
in the literature._

Is it that unique? I thought α and β chains of hemoglobin for example are also
separate subunits.

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jbermudes
They're also working on a "vaccine" for cavities: replacing the native
bacteria in your mouth that consume the leftover sugars and excrete acid that
eats away at the enamel with genetically modified versions that are harmless.
[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caries_vaccine#Attempts_using_R...](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caries_vaccine#Attempts_using_Replacement_Therapy)

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chopsueyar
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caries_vaccine>

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goombastic
If an industry has an association, don't expect lower prices or breakthroughs
that reduce work to happen.

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sliverstorm
I wonder... This would basically put most dentists out of business. We'd still
need some dentists and oral surgeons and orthodontists, but not nearly as
many.

~~~
nopassrecover
In Australia we have free health care but not dental. Dental is often an
exceptional case in most healthcare plans as well. It would be nice to not
have to worry about that any longer.

I'd be interested to know what proportion of dentistry is due to decay,
particularly with the advent of chlorinated water. You'd possibly still need
checkups for gum diseases.

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ThomPete
Denmark same thing and dental care here is expensive. It can easily put any
medium income family back a 8K just to get a bridge done.

~~~
Egregore
You can fly to Repuplic of Moldova, it will be cheaper even considering
airplane tickets.

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giardini
We've been promised cures for tooth decay for fully 40 years. None has come to
fruition in the USA - dentists are too firmly entrenched to let that happen.
It would wipe them out, something pretty useful in general, since dental costs
are predicted to skyrocket in the next 10 years.

Two generations of tooth decay _vaccines_ haven't made it to the USA although
in some cases they were available in Great Britain and Europe.

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recampbell
Source?

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giardini
Here you go, buttbreath:

<http://lmgtfy.com/?q=tooth+decay+vaccine+in+britain>

<http://lmgtfy.com/?q=history+%20caries+vaccine>

