Carbohydrate-controlled precipitation of apatite with coprecipitation of organic molecules in human saliva: stabilizing role of polyols

Sugar alcohols, caries incidence, and remineralization of caries lesions: a literature review

Remineralization of minor enamel defects is a normal physiological process that is well known to clinicians and researchers in dentistry and oral biology. This process can be facilitated by various dietary and oral hygiene procedures and may also concern dentin caries lesions. Dental caries is reversible if detected and treated sufficiently early. Habitual use of xylitol, a sugar alcohol of the pentitol type, can be associated with significant reduction in caries incidence and with tooth remineralization. Other dietary polyols that can remarkably lower the incidence of caries include erythritol which is a tetritol-type alditol. Based on known molecular parameters of simple dietary alditols, it is conceivable to predict that their efficacy in caries prevention will follow the homologous series, that is, that the number of OH-groups present in the alditol molecule will determine the efficacy as follows: erythritol >/= xylitol > sorbitol. The possible difference between erythritol and xylitol must be confirmed in future clinical trials.

Polymer-Controlled, Bio-Inspired Calcium Phosphate Mineralization from Aqueous Solution

Nowadays, the majority of the commercially available calcium phosphate materials is fabricated by 'classical' materials science approaches, i.e., from rather poorly defined slurries or from organic solvents, often at high temperatures and pressures. Bioinspired precipitation of inorganics with (polymeric) additives from aqueous solution, on the other hand, enables the synthesis of intriguing inorganic or organic/inorganic materials that are often much more closely related to biological structures. This article discusses approaches for the fabrication of bio-inspired calcium phosphate hybrid materials by precipitation from aqueous solution. The article focuses on polymers and related self-assembling structures for the design of CaP/organic hybrids and pure CaP with crystal structures and morphologies regulated by the respective additive.

A dietary procedure for preventing dental caries in young adults

Significant improvement in the dental caries status of children in the United States has been seen in recent decades. The percentage of children who are free from dental caries, however, rapidly decreases with age. By the time young people enter colleges or universities, only a few are caries free. Colleges and universities are places where the young are simultaneously, and perhaps for the last time, reachable as large cohorts before their lives undergo further "individualization." This makes college age a time that is crucial for channeling information about proper oral health practices by organizing mass-directed strategies for prevention of dental caries. It is now clear that dental caries can effectively be prevented. This calls for placing strong emphasis on dietary behavior and on the use of sugar substitutes as part of the strategy. Scientific evidence also suggests that the addition of small daily quantities of xylitol, a natural carbohydrate sweetener, to the diet of children and young adults causes significant reduction in the incidence of dental caries. On the basis of detailed long-term clinical trials carried out during the past 20 years, it appears that a reduction ranging from 30% to more than 85% in dental caries can be achieved simply by using a few xylitol chewing gums daily over a period of 1 to 3 years. In individual cases, virtually total, long-term protection against caries has been observed.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)