Fish-Friendly Dentistry: Revolutionizing Non-Lethal Oral Research

Researchers from the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology (OIST) explored an approach that lets them investigate teeth and jaws of living vertebrates without killing them. Described in the Journal of Morphology this technique involves using human dental impressions for obtaining detailed dental features making oral research humane and economical (1^✔ ✔Trusted Source
Modifiable Clinical Dental Impression Methods to Obtain Whole-Mouth and Detailed Dental Traits From Vertebrates

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Dental Impressions in Specialized Trays

The technique was tested on Polypterus senegalus which is a fish species belonging to a group that has evolved 360 million years ago. The procedure starts with anaesthesia of the fish after which the teeth of the fish are air dried. High-viscous putty and low-viscous polyvinyl siloxane materials are used afterwards by researchers to make precise dental impressions inside 3D printed try-in trays. The process lasts for 5- 10 min and is not invasive and causes no harm to the animal.

To some extent, it had to deal with small fish, each with a jaw no broader than a human finger and teeth not more than a millimeter in length. Still, the team was able to obtain specific impressions from 60 fish without any mortality on each release. These feeding behaviors were clearly noticed since microwear patterns, as shown on the tooth surfaces were evident.

Applications of the Method

A new method will be used instead of killing specimens for dental purposes. It enables examinations of growth, replacement and wearing process of teeth chronologically in living animals. This technique is useful particularly for rare species of fauna and for the material from museums.

Consequently, the method finds various uses, such as studying feeding patterns, jaw function, and changes with development. It helps analyse the data collected on different species since it provides information about the diets, genetic differences and growth characteristics of animals. Such an opportunity to observe dental characteristics without sample destruction is a breakthrough for further analysis of biodiversity and the field of evolutionary biology.

It has a humane, non-invasive, accurate and inexpensive approach which reforms the dental research in vertebrates. It has a great potential for museums and for studies of biodiversity and comparative anatomy, which makes available information not retrievable with conventional approaches.

Reference:

1. Modifiable Clinical Dental Impression Methods to Obtain Whole-Mouth and Detailed Dental Traits From Vertebrates - (https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/jmor.70017)

Source-Medindia