LAUSR

Dental enamel is a principal component of our teeth, providing protection to the underlying dentin. It has evolved to bear large masticatory forces, resist mechanical fatigue, and withstand wear over decades of use. However, as an acellular tissue, it lacks some of the sophisticated self-repair capabilities of other mineralized tissues such as bone. Functional impairment or loss of enamel, for instance as a consequence of developmental defects or tooth decay (caries), has a dramatic impact on health and quality of life, and causes significant costs to society.[1] The ability to characterize the chemically complex microstructure of enamel is fundamentally enabling research targeted at improving caries prophylaxis and early/noninvasive intervention, understanding developmental mechanisms, and developing novel and/or bioinspired materials.