How Does the Brain Protect Dental Implants? Lizard Model Gives Clues
BY LAUREN UZDIENSKI, OCTOBER 12, 2010
As Science Daily reports, an ancient species of New Zealand lizard may have something to teach us about dental implants. A natural tooth is bound to the alveolar bone by the periodontal ligament, or PDL, which sends signals to the brain that help protect the tooth from the forces of chewing. Dental implants lack the PDL, and scientists were wondering what keeps the tooth safe in the absence of that ligament. They turned to a lizard for the answers.
The sphenodon, or tuatara, is large reptile that predated the Maori people in New Zealand, elevating it to an "iconic" status in the nation. Like humans with dental implants, the tatura's teeth are fused directly to the jawbone. And while there are some anecdotal suggestions that humans may guard their implants by adjusting the food they eat, tuataras enjoy a broad diet, including beetles, spiders, snails, frogs and even birds.
The researchers created a computer model of the tuatura's skull and neck, designed to observe the forces and feedback expressed when the reptile chewed. As predicted, the tuatara can unconsciously measure the force applied to the jaw joint and modulate its muscle activity accordingly. Similar processing is expected to occur in other species, with one of the scientists affiliated with the study concluding that the research identifies an intriguing "redundancy in our biology that opens opportunities to support long term health and well-being."
