Age-Related Tooth Wear Differs between Forest and Savanna Primates

Tooth wear in primates is caused by aging and ecological factors. However, comparative data that would allow us to delineate the contribution of each of these factors are lacking. Here, we contrast age-dependent molar tooth wear by scoring percent of dentine exposure (PDE) in two wild African primate populations from Gabonese forest and Kenyan savanna habitats. We found that forest-dwelling mandrills exhibited significantly higher PDE with age than savanna yellow baboons. Mandrills mainly feed on large tough food items, such as hard-shell fruits, and inhabit an ecosystem with a high presence of mineral quartz. By contrast, baboons consume large amounts of exogenous grit that adheres to underground storage organs but the proportion of quartz in the soils where baboons live is low. Our results support the hypothesis that not only age but also physical food properties and soil composition, particularly quartz richness, are factors that significantly impact tooth wear. We further propose that the accelerated dental wear in mandrills resulting in flatter molars with old age may represent an adaptation to process hard food items present in their environment.

GDAP1-related autosomal dominant Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease: phenotypical and MRI features

El present estudi es basa en la descripció de quatre famílies portadores d’una mateixa mutació puntual (p.R120W) en el gen GDAP1 que segreguen d’una manera autosòmica dominant. Les trobades més rellevants foren:  Els individus afectats varen tindre un començament més tardà i un fenotipus més lleu que les mutacions recessives del gen GDAP-1, però amb una gran variabilitat clínica.  La Resonància Magnètica Muscular va demostrar una afectació selectiva de la musculatura intrínseca del peu i la part distal del panxell. El compartiment posterior superficial de la musculatura del panxell estava més afectat que el compartiment anterolateral.

A Neanderthal Lower Incisor from Cova del Gegant (Sitges, Barcelona, Spain)

Cova del Gegant is located near the city of Sitges (Barcelona, Spain). The cave is a small karst system which contains Upper Pleistocene archaeological and paleontological material (DauRa et al., 2005). The site was first excavated in 1954 and then in 1972 and 1974- (Viñas, 1972; Viñas & Villalta, 1975) and in 1985 and 1989 (maRtínez et al., 1985; moRa, 1988; maRtínez et al., 1990). Finally, in 2007, Grup de Recerca del Quaternari has restarted the archaeological research at Cova del Gegant (DauRa, 2008; DauRa et al., 2010). A human mandible was recovered during the first field season in 1954 and was recently published by DauRa et al. (2005). In the present study, we describe a new human tooth (left I2) that appeared, like the mandible, in a revision of the faunal material recovered from the site in 1974-1975. The specimen preserves the entire crown and the cervical two thirds of the root (Figure 1). The lack of the root apex makes it difficult to determine if the tooth was fully developed at the time of death. However, CT analysis reveals a pulp cavity that could be still open, suggesting root formation was incomplete. The specimen shows only slight dental wear corresponding to stage 2 of Molnar (1971 en Hillson, 1996). Morphologically, the crown shows slight shovelling and a lingual tubercle and appears similar to Neandertal incisors. Standard crown measurements (buccolingual diameter=7.7 mm; mesiodistal diameter= 7.3 mm) (Figure 2) suggest a fairly large tooth, particularly in the BL dimension, again resembling Neandertals in this regard. Discriminant analysis classified the Gegant incisor as Neandertal with a 99.8% posterior probability (Table 2). Association of this tooth with the previously described mandible is considered unlikely given the different ages at death estimated for each. Thus, there appear to be two individuals preserved in the sediments of the Gegant cave, one adult and one subadult (around 8-10 years old).

Cyclosporine A, an alternative to the oral lichen planus erosive treatment

We present a double-blind study in two groups afflicted with oral lichen planus erythematous of long evolution and resistant to other treatments. We tested on it a treatment with Cyclosporine A (CyA) which had been successfully used before by many dermatologists. In the group A we used mouthwashes with a 5 ml Cyclosporine A solution to a 10% in olive oil of 0.4 degrees of acidity for five minutes, three times a day for eight weeks. In the control group we used acetonide of triamcinolone 01% in aqueous solution. Patients in group A improved considerably in their symptomatology in a 90% against a 60% in group B. In group A we could appreciate a disappearance of the symptomatology after two weeks of treatment in 60% of patients against 30% in group B. CyA can be an alternative to the conventional treatments in the acute period of lichen planus although it can not be considered as a first option drug because of the high cost of the treatment. For long term, results are not so good and we consider that extensive studies are necessary

enControl wear

Aquest projecte s'endinsa en l'ecosistema Android Wear, ampliant l'aplicació d'smart home "enControl" als dispositius smart watch. Durant el projecte s'han seguit totes les fases de desenvolupament de l'aplicació: des dels primers dissenys fins a la implementació final que funciona correctament.

Maxillary dentigerous cyst and supernumerary tooth. Is it a frequent association?

Dentigerous cysts, also known as follicular cysts, are a relatively common pathology in our field. They are associated with unerupted or semi-erupted teeth and are usually not related to supernumerary teeth. OBJECTIVE: To describe a dentigerous cyst case associated to a supernumerary tooth. CASE-REPORT: A large-sized dentigerous cyst is described, associated with a supernumerary tooth, affecting the whole maxillary anterior area. Appropriate treatment consists of performing root canals and a Partsch II procedure with a cystectomy, extracting the unerupted teeth, carrying out an apicoectomy and retro-filling the affected teeth. The defect is filled with a bone xenograft. Possible therapeutic alternatives and the connection between the dentigerous cysts and supernumerary teeth are considered in the discussion.