title: Greater concentration of dietary sucrose decreases dentin formation and increases the area of dentinal caries in growing rats.
abstract: The effect of increasing dietary sucrose concentration on dentin formation and dentinal caries progression was studied. Weanling Wistar rats received 15, 30 or 43 g/100 g sucrose in a diet; for reference, another group was fed a nonpurified diet. At the onset, tetracycline was injected to mark the dentin formed during the experiment. After 6 wk, lower molars were sectioned sagittally; the areas and thicknesses of the dentin formation during the experiment and dentinal caries lesions were quantified separately in the first and second molars. Feeding the 43% sucrose diet resulted in a significantly lower dentin formation than in other diet groups (P < 0.05). The differences obtained from the area measurements were supported by thickness measurements. In the first molar, the 43% sucrose diet resulted in a significantly greater area of dentinal caries than in the other sucrose groups. The number and severity of caries lesions clearly increased as the concentration of sucrose in the diet increased (r = 0.5, P < 0.05 and r = 0.6, P < 0.05, respectively). This study suggests that the increase in the concentration of sucrose in the diet reduces dentin formation and increases the area of dentinal caries as well as the number and severity of caries lesions; the critical sucrose concentration appears to be between 30 and 43 g/100 g.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cariology and Pediatric Dentistry, Institute of Dentistry, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Huumonen
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Tjäderhane
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Larmas
mesh_terms: D000704:Analysis of Variance; D000818:Animals; D002326:Cariogenic Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000494:pharmacology; D003731:Dental Caries / Q000209:etiology* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D003804:Dentin / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000378:metabolism; D004037:Diet, Cariogenic; D019422:Dietary Sucrose / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000494:pharmacology; D018450:Disease Progression; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D005260:Female; D006128:Growth / Q000502:physiology; D008963:Molar / Q000187:drug effects / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism; D009753:Nutritive Value; D011897:Random Allocation; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D012720:Severity of Illness Index
chemical_list: D002326:Cariogenic Agents; D019422:Dietary Sucrose