Welcome to Running: A FEVER. My name is Michael Davis, and this is a podcast about fitness, diet, and medicine. My goal is to live a long, healthy, happy, active life right up to the end. And I do all that by simply loving my life enough to make it last as long as possible.
It’s the 5th in our series of 10 episodes specifically about dental health. We’re trying to find out how to obtain and maintain oral health by learning the causes of various dental problems and addressing the causes with a plan of treatment, hygiene, and changes in behavior.
Thus far, we’ve dealt with the topics of dry mouth and diet. And last week, we discussed what biofilm is and how it can work for or against us depending on what we do.
This week, it’s all about genetics and how they determine how much trouble we’re going to have keeping our teeth healthy. Yes, it is a factor. Knowing what hand you’re dealt at birth can help you play it as well as possibly later in life.
Deoxyribonucleic Acid, or DNA, exists in every cell we have. It is like a computer program in which the code that determines the structure of our bodies. 99% of this code is exactly the same for every human being. It is the final 1% that makes each person (and each person’s teeth) unique.
Genes are just segments of DNA that control certain functions, like lines of code or words in a computer program. Genetics is the study of these genes. Each gene controls a particular physical characteristic. They are inherited from our parents, sometimes intact, and sometimes with mutations that cause genetic conditions, including those related to oral health. It is estimated that 10% of the causes of tooth decay are the responsibility of genes (by the way, 60% is behavior, and the rest goes to dental professionals, which means you should definitely be seeing a dentist and dental hygienist).
Several types of genes can cause problems: those that control tooth development, those that control saliva production, those related to taste, and some other considerations. If you’ll excuse the pun, let’s drill down into these one at a time.
Tooth Development Genes
It makes sense that the genes that control the development of teeth, particularly tooth enamel, are important in understanding what causes tooth decay. Ideally, we would all grow strong teeth with a sound protective barrier in enamel. But unfortunately, that is not the case. There are two specific problems in this group: amelogenesis imperfecta and dentinogenesis imperfecta. There’s a mouthful!
The first concerns the development of a strong layer of enamel on teeth. It is caused when three genes simultaneously mutate: AMELX, ENAM, and MMP20. A person affected by this will experience tooth decay immediately after the tooth comes in.
The second condition, dentinogenesis imperfecta, is the degeneration of the inner layers of the teeth, which is called dentin. I’m particularly familiar with this because friction between my upper and lower teeth has exposed the dentin, which is why I wear braces now. But I digress. Teeth affected by this damaged dentin are weaker and can chip and break more easily.
Saliva Production Genes
The importance of saliva has been mentioned in almost all of the episodes in this series. So, any mutation of genes related to saliva production can significantly impact tooth health and the occurrence of tooth decay.
The AQP5 gene controls a protein that is important in saliva production. The DBFP1 gene is responsible for an enzyme, beta defensin-1, which helps protect the teeth. The AMELX, AMNB, and ESRRB genes help provide minerals in saliva that replace those lost in decay due to an acidic environment in the mouth.
Taste Genes
Why would taste be important to this topic? Well, taste determines the foods we like to eat, some of which are more destructive to teeth than others. TS2R38 mutations show up in people known as supertasters. Supertasters are just people who prefer sweets to vegetables. Isn’t that everybody? It is supposed to express less later in life, but I have seen no evidence of that in my 58-year-old self. Naturally, a preference for sweets means bad bacteria in the mouth will be very happy, and tooth decay will be imminent.
So those are the big ones. There are quite a few more. If you’re interested, I recommend checking out the references I published in the blog post at http://RunningAFEVER.com/374.
Okay, so we know we have the potential for our dental genes to be mutated and cause problems. What can we do about it? According to one of my sources, no testing is available. But it was published four years ago, and genetics is a rapidly advancing field. Several companies are now advertising genetic testing for dental genes. One of them is Viome, who offers a $259 test that they claim uses “advanced RNA technology”. Another is Curion. They have a product called OralRisk Genetic Testing for $209.
With this knowledge, hopefully, your team of dental professionals can better help you prevent tooth decay. Environment and behavior are still the overwhelming factors in preventing tooth decay. Advances in genetic science may soon be able to provide relief to those with gene-related conditions. In the meantime, as always, I recommend regularly taking advantage of the services of professionals. Get a dental exam every year, and talk to your dentist about the possible causes of your problems, including your genetic makeup.
Wow, there’s a lot of stuff there. As I mentioned before, you can find out more from the references in the blog post. I’ve learned just enough about dental genetics to have an idea of how much I still need to learn. I hope you’ve learned something, too.
Just a quick note: I am making videos of most of the new episodes now, and you can see my lovely face on them at http://YouTube.com/@runningafever. Or search for @runningafever, all one word.
And as always, if you have the fever, keep it burning. And if you don’t, catch the fever. And I will see you next time on Running: A FEVER.
References:
https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/body/23064-dna-genes–chromosomes
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genetics#:~:text=Genetics%20is%20the%20study%20of,first%20to%20study%20genetics%20scientifically.
Kutsch, V. Kim. Why Me? The unfair reason you get cavities and what to do about it. Anacortes, Washington: Soapbox Publishing, 2020.
Image by Mahmoud Ahmed:
https://pixabay.com/users/mahmoud-ahmed-16261757/?utm_source=link-attribution&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=image&utm_content=5297378