What is Digg?108 Comments
- Bdog2g2, on 10/31/2007, -18/+94"resulting in possible larger-scale side effects"
global warming? - ThndrShk2k, on 10/12/2007, -3/+39"As around America, a new group has been formed to fight what is now called Bacterial Piracy. The Dentistry Association of America *DAA* has successfully lobbied that the sharing of the new miracle bacteria commonly known as "Cavity B-Gone" would be considered illegal and a violation of the 2007 Genetic Copyright Act.
Such piracy would include the swapping of infected saliva through any means, bottles, sharing drinks, and most popularly: Kissing"
I can see the headlines now... - puffarthur, on 10/12/2007, -3/+29or the terrible gum disease known as GINGIVITIS!!!!
- darkdaedra, on 10/12/2007, -1/+22If people use this as an excuse to stop brushing their teeth, horizontal transmission will no longer be a problem.
- celerate, on 10/31/2007, -12/+26That had to be a joke right? Because I laughed...
Why is it that when people don't get the joke they resort to voting comments down. - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -1/+15I remember my first case of crotch lions. Girlfriend hated getting near me while that lion kept trying to maul her.
- hackwrench, on 10/12/2007, -2/+14Well then we develop procedures to address the side affects. I'm tired of the "nobody touch anything" crowd, they're holding back progress. When it comes down to it, there's less way of knowing if we're going to be killed if we limit ourselves to keeping things the way we first discovered them than if we reach our hands in full and attempt to change things to our liking, constantly making adjustments as we go along.
- puffarthur, on 10/12/2007, -2/+14too much candy will give you diabetes type II (insulin insensitivity)
- hackwrench, on 10/12/2007, -1/+12There is no fine balance. There is only localized areas of stability.
- Dracos, on 10/12/2007, -0/+10I'm sure the American Dental Association is afraid of this. If this is legit and gets any mainstream press, expect lots of mudslinging at Oragenics.
- kaytrio, on 10/12/2007, -1/+11Unfortunately, it can't help with STDs. This is a very specific treatment that will only effect the S. mutans bacteria. Anyways, most STDs (AIDS, herpes) are viruses, which are much harder to treat.
- TheNik, on 10/12/2007, -0/+9Why did they have to refer to it as "An Orgy in Your Mouth"? :(
- Dissipate, on 10/12/2007, -3/+12Wow, I would love to not have to worry about cavities.
- Celeron, on 10/12/2007, -1/+9About time. My last cavity filling was $300!
- jarcoal, on 10/12/2007, -2/+10that picture at the top disgusts me
- potee, on 10/12/2007, -0/+8@andreo: Not always. Some people, including me, have extremely weak enamel. It's a genetic thing. Couple that with my semipermanent cottonmouth, and you have a recipe for oral disaster. (Food particles don't get washed away as quickly as they should, forming cavities rather quickly.) I get probably 10 cavities a year, and I brush, floss and use Listerine religiously. Hence, this bacteria would be a godsend, for my mouth and my wallet.
- V1ncent, on 10/12/2007, -2/+10I predict the side effect of genetically modifying the bacteria will be bacteria the size of houses that eat children. Win-win. :)
- junner518, on 10/12/2007, -1/+9cavities suck!!
- thras, on 10/31/2007, -5/+12It's a Commie plot to sap the purity of our vital bodily fluids!
- spriggig, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7I've been tracking this for about five years now. The doc has been working on it for over twenty years. He, his wife, kids, early study groups etc. have had the "new" bugs for about 15 years. About a year ago I ran across an early independent study that showed a 60% decrease in cavities, proving that the bug isn't the only thing in our mouths causing cavities.
I can't wait for it to be approved and available, my family will be the first in line--assuming we can afford it. - JamesWilson, on 10/12/2007, -12/+19Speaking of ding-dongs in people's mouths..
Would this also kill any STDs transmitted via oral sex? - jaspinDroid, on 10/12/2007, -4/+10Mod me down if you must, but these things are already happening. Just look at genetically modified terminator seeds. The pollen from these terminator crops is blowing in the wind and pollenating normal crops, contaminating the established crop gene pool.
Also somewhere in asia they are planting a forest of genetically modified trees that exude poisons that kill any insect that comes into contact with them.
Ya, great idea. Nothing could go wrong with that at all.
The fine balance that has estalbished itself over millennia of evolution is being disrupted at a dangerous pace by the fiddlings of man. - fastfood15, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5too bad you can't torrent bacteria...
- Paintwiz, on 10/12/2007, -1/+6"The first strains tested on humans have been deliberately crippled to require a daily "feeding" of a particular amino acid in order to survive."
Anyone here getting a flashback to "Jurassic Park"? - OBKenobi, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5Rotting food isn't a problem. Acids created by bacteria are what cause tooth decay. Lactic acid is so strong you can use it as a meat tenderizer. It is also what produces things like pickles, yogurt, and other fermented foods.
- Prometheus, on 10/12/2007, -1/+6Flouridation of water is the most devious commie plot ever.
Nineteen hundred and forty-six. Nineteen forty-six, Mandrake. How does that coincide with your post-war Commie conspiracy, huh? It's incredibly obvious, isn't it? A foreign substance is introduced into our precious bodily fluids without the knowledge of the individual. Certainly without any choice. That's the way your hard-core Commie works. - Unicyclelarry, on 10/12/2007, -1/+6Life finds a way...
- dementedcrabs, on 10/12/2007, -1/+6Twinkies and ding-dongs for all!!!
- Eccles, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4Hah. I know how much I'm spending on my kids' braces, retainers, etc. And wisdom teeth don't pull themselves out. The cleaning fees are a small fraction of my dental expenses. Not so good for dental hygenists, perhaps.
- spriggig, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4From http://www.deeperwants.com/cul1/homeworlds/journal/archives/002948.html
"Still, even getting to this point has been a challenge. Dr. Hillman has been working on this therapy for 25 years and first applied to the F.D.A. for permission to begin a clinical trial in 1998. The agency, the company said, has demanded change upon change to make sure the modified bacteria would not run amok, cause undesirable changes in the mouth, or revert to a cavity-producing form.
To win approval, Oragenics has agreed that the 15 volunteers in the first trial will not even have teeth - they will have dentures. That way, if something unexpected happens, the dentures can be plopped into bleach to exterminate the microbes, which mainly stick to teeth." - SoldierPrime, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4Hey I get cavaties because I don't floss, not becuase I don't brush... stupid teeth make it so hard to floss becuase they are so tight... :(
- Protonz, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4I keep getting the feeling my dentist views my teeth as tiny goldmines that he can't wait to drill into. Oral care hasn't really changed for the past 20 years (okay there is the toothbrush-vibrator hybrid), but the conspiracy nut in me thinks the dental community does not want to see progress.
- andreo, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5Um, can't you just brush your teeth after every meal (and snack) and not have to worry about cavities. I've not had a cavity in 10 years.
- fallenone05, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4Nothing good comes out of Florida...
- wilf_brim, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3This has been the holy grail of dental bacteriology for 30 years, at least. This has been a theoretical possibility since the ability to alter the genome of bacteria became possible. If this even shows a 50% reduction in caries it would clearly be worthwhile. It has huge implications for the third world, where dental hygiene is not so great. One time application could have a huge impact on long term dental health.
- hackwrench, on 10/12/2007, -2/+5Yeah well, from my perspective, living your life depending on the ability to predict what's going to happen next and destroying anything that hinders that predictability is what's stupid. It leads to an inability to handle the unpredictable, because the unpredictable ceases to be a common part of daily life.
- CiXeL, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4I'll believe it when i see it. I live in florida and this is the land of conmen.
- delay, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4Everyone seems to think genetically modified anything is bad. Bottom line its the future for many treatments. Lets not forget cavities cause their own share of problems some of which can be quite serious like bloodstream infections. I always found it interesting that flossing your teeth seems to subtract 6 years from your RealAge numbers. So that shows how important it is to keep your mouth clean. Of course expect a huge fight from dentists as cavities are there bread and butter. Personally I would rather have some genetically modified bacteria than all these mercury rich fillings in my mouth....
- NoMoreNicksLeft, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3That *is* a recipe for disaster. The bacteria would become resistant in a matter of weeks, were the toxin not in your mouth constantly. On the other hand, if it's continuously being exuded by indigenous bacteria, it will keep them forced out for good.
- rofgilead, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3I think this is a neat idea going in a different direction than most research. However, I see a couple problems- the S. mutans bacteria that their mutant strain competes with also is the main bacteria for creating plaque on the tooth surface. This plaque allows other strains of bacteria to have a binding site that allows them to attack the teeth. This mutant strain of bacteria (while lactic acid secretion is knocked out) will still create the colonization sites for the other strains which attack teeth - therefore cavities will still occur. Second, I would expect resistant strains of bacteria to evolve to respond to this competitor. I also don't understand why they don't simply use the secreted toxin directly in a toothpaste rather than through a novel genetically modified organsim.
Note: I am a bit biased, since I am a graduate student researching S. mutans, with the same interest in blocking its pathogenesis. - Prometheus, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3What? No love for the bomb on digg?
- CarlHaynes, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3I would be more interested in them putting the toxin that the new bacteria produce into tooth paste that way you wouldnt have to brush as often and you wouldnt have to have a gm bacteria in you mouth
- potee, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4This won't help methheads. Methamphetamine vapors dissolve enamel and gum tissue, which causes methmouth. I giggled at your post though.
The More You Know. - TyRaNNOus, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2The only damage this would do is hurt how much denists can ***** you out of your check when your in so much pain and can't do anything but starve for less pain.
In a world that's getting busier and busier its not a matter of lazy its a matter of trying to squeeze enough time in for sleep, then breakfast and getting to work on time. 5minutes doesn't seem like much but when some people have trouble finding time for their kids I'm sure superb teeth care is low on the priority list. - NoMoreNicksLeft, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Well, I'm a highschool flunky. But it seems to me that non-continuous doses of the toxin will result in resistance much more quickly (spectacularly so) than a native population of bacteria cranking the stuff out 24/7. That's how you make bacteria resistant to antibiotics, right? Dose them up, let them recover, dose them again, etc. If the antibiotics faucet is on fullblast, all the time, they never get a chance... this is why you're always supposed to take the full prescription of the stuff and not cut out early.
As for somehow not being able to thrive, humans have often introduced new invasive species that are never again pushed out of the territories they then infest. The only thing that would be different this time, is that the invasive species is GM.
Do they teach something different in graduate school? - Obsidian743, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3Damn. The potential sucks for dentists. The whole "larger-scale side effects" propaganda is probably being pushed by dentists. Imagine the insane drop in their precious 6 figure salaries when no one needs them anymore. If I were an up-an-coming dentist that just paid out the ass for school I would be mighty pissed.
- yukevster, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Thank you Dr. Rshackleford.
- ricodued, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2zboog missed the joke.
You won't be kissing anyone who stopped brushing their teeth. Or even be around them, for that matter.
Hence preventing transmission of disease. - osbjmg, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2"somewhere in asia"
Ha, I love uncredited sources. Not that it isn't true, but it sounds really silly. - Rshackleford, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2@Siriuskr
Genetics and the types of food you eat (not just soda or candies) play a larger role in developing caries than not brushing your teeth. -
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