Dental News - Putting teeth into forensic science

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory

Mon. 21 June 2010

save

LIVERMORE, CA, USA: In a large natural disaster or in an unsolved homicide case, knowing the birth date of an individual can guide forensic investigators to his or her correct identity. Using the Lawrence Livermore’s Center for Accelerator Mass Spectrometry, Dr Bruce Buchholz and colleagues at the Karolinska Institute in Sweden determined that radioactive carbon-14 (14C) remains in the dental enamel, the hardest substance in the body.

The radiocarbon analysis, which determines the amount of ¹⁴C in tooth enamel, showed that dating the teeth with the carbon-14 method would estimate the birth date within one year. Scientists can relate the extensive atmospheric record for ¹⁴C to when the tooth was formed and calculate the age of the tooth and its owner.

“Traditional structural re-creation methods used by anthropologists to determine age are often imprecise,” according to Dr Buchholz. “Radiocarbon dating gives a clear idea of the individual’s birth date.”

In the study, 44 teeth from 41 individuals were analysed using racemization (a chemical process in which one amino acid is converted to its counterpart) analysis of tooth crown dentine or radiocarbon analysis of enamel, and ten of these were split and subjected to both radiocarbon and racemization analysis. Combined analysis showed that the two methods correlated well.

Above ground testing of nuclear weapons during the Cold War caused a surge in global levels of ¹⁴C, or radiocarbon, which has been carefully recorded over time. Radiocarbon is naturally produced by cosmic ray interactions with air and is present at low levels in the atmosphere and food. Although nuclear weapons testing was conducted at only a few locations, excess levels of ¹⁴C in the atmosphere rapidly dispersed and equalised around the globe.

(Edited by Claudia Salwiczek, DTI)

To post a reply please login or register

Diving into the forensics of dentistry

SAN FRANCISCO, CA, USA: A quartet of lecturers presented Forensic Dentistry: CSI: San Francisco—Who was this? during a lecture at CDA Presents the Art...

AAPD: Putting children first

SEATTLE, Wash., USA: Paul Casamassimo, DDS, the director of the AAPD’s Health Policy Center, succinctly sums up the unique way AAPD serves its ...

Hygienists help in forensics

The Rhode Island fire of 2003 was the fourth deadliest in U.S. nightclub history. Ninety-six people perished on the night of the fire, four more in the ...

Dentists who are converting extracted teeth into bone graft report outstanding long-term results

As more and more dentists are using the Smart Dentin Grinder protocol to convert extracted teeth into autologous graft, it is becoming obvious that the ...

Famed forensic anthropologist to headline AGD meeting in Nashville

CHICAGO, Ill., USA: World-renowned forensic anthropologist William Bass III, PhD, will be the keynote speaker for the Academy of General Dentistry’s ...

The science behind the smile

ANAHEIM, CA, USA: In an interview with Dental Tribune conducted at the recent California Dental Association meeting (15 to 17 May), GC America ...

The breakthrough science of blocking pain

The International Association for the Study of Pain defines pain as, “an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with actual or ...

Dentsply Sirona Implants: Driven by science

Like you, we believe that science matters. For more than four decades, Dentsply Sirona has collaborated with clinicians and scientists at the forefront of ...

AAID’s annual conference blends classic, cutting edge

The science of implant dentistry sees improvements and innovation every day. The American Academy of Implant Dentistry’s 64th Annual Educational ...

Recycling dental waste into marketing

NEW YORK, N.Y., USA: An upcycling and recycling pioneer called TerraCycle runs a free recycling fundraiser to collect what otherwise would be non-recyclable...

Education

On-demand
webinar

Reaching new levels in bone augmentation using Sculptoss^® Individulized ceramic membrane and GTO^®

Dr. Jonas Anderud Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Halmstad, Sweden – Department of Biomaterials, Gothenburg University, Sweden

Dr. Johan Malmström Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Halmstad, Sweden – Department of Biomaterials, Gothenburg University, Sweden – Brånemark Clinic Gothenburg, Sweden, Dr. Jonas Anderud Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Halmstad, Sweden – Department of Biomaterials, Gothenburg University, Sweden

Watch recording

1CE

Live webinar
Tue. 21 October 2025
7:00 PM EST (New York)