Sir John Walsh Research Institute, Faculty of Dentistry, University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand.
Research Centre in Evolutionary Anthropology and Palaeoecology, School of Biological and Environmental Sciences, Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool, UK.
Am J Primatol. 2022 Jan;84(1):e23349. doi: 10.1002/ajp.23349. Epub 2021 Dec 2.
Dental caries has been reported in a variety of primates, although it is still considered rare in wild populations. In this study, 11 catarrhine primate taxa (n = 339 individuals; 7946 teeth) were studied for the presence of caries. A differential diagnosis of lesions in interproximal regions of anterior teeth was undertaken, since they had been previously described as both carious and non-carious in origin. Each permanent tooth was examined macroscopically, with severity and position of lesions recorded. Two specimens were examined further, using micro-CT scans to assess demineralization. Differential diagnosis confirmed the cariogenic nature of interproximal cavities on anterior teeth (ICATs). Overall results show 3.3% of all teeth (i.e., anterior and posterior teeth combined) were carious (n = 262), with prevalence varying among species from 0% to >7% of teeth affected. Those with the highest prevalence of ICATs include Pan troglodytes verus (9.8% of anterior teeth), Gorilla gorilla gorilla (2.6%), Cercopithecus denti (22.4%), Presbytis femoralis (19.5%), and Cercopithecus mitis (18.3%). ICATs make up 87.9% of carious lesions on anterior teeth. These results likely reflect dietary and food processing differences among species, but also between the sexes (e.g., 9.3% of all female P. troglodytes verus teeth were carious vs. 1.8% in males). Processing cariogenic fruits and seeds with the anterior dentition (e.g., wadging) likely contributes to ICAT formation. Further research is needed in living primate populations to ascertain behavioral/dietary influences on caries occurrence. Given the presence of ICATs in frugivorous primates, their diagnosis in archaeological and paleontological specimens may shed light on diet and food processing behaviors in fossil primates.
龋齿在各种灵长类动物中都有报道，尽管在野生种群中仍被认为较为罕见。本研究对 11 种猫科灵长类动物（n=339 个体；7946 颗牙齿）进行了龋齿检查。对前牙近中区域的病变进行了鉴别诊断，因为这些病变以前被描述为既有龋性又有非龋性来源。每颗恒牙都进行了宏观检查，记录了病变的严重程度和位置。进一步对两个标本进行了检查，使用微 CT 扫描评估脱矿质情况。鉴别诊断证实了前牙近中区域龋齿（ICAT）的致龋性。总体结果显示，所有牙齿（即前牙和后牙）中有 3.3%（n=262）患有龋齿，不同物种的患病率从 0%到 262 颗牙齿受影响的>7%不等。患病率最高的 ICAT 包括黑猩猩（Pan troglodytes verus，前牙的 9.8%）、大猩猩（Gorilla gorilla gorilla，2.6%）、疣猴（Cercopithecus denti，22.4%）、菲氏叶猴（Presbytis femoralis，19.5%）和白臀叶猴（Cercopithecus mitis，18.3%）。ICAT 占前牙龋齿病变的 87.9%。这些结果可能反映了不同物种之间以及不同性别之间的饮食和食物加工差异（例如，所有雌性黑猩猩中，有 9.3%的牙齿患有龋齿，而雄性中仅有 1.8%）。用前齿（例如楔入）处理致龋水果和种子可能导致 ICAT 形成。需要对活体灵长类动物种群进行进一步研究，以确定行为/饮食对龋齿发生的影响。鉴于 ICAT 在食果灵长类动物中存在，它们在前人牙列的诊断可能会揭示化石灵长类动物的饮食和食物处理行为。
