Keynote Address: Redefining Cariology

The discipline of Cariology has many facets which range from the diagnosis, prevention and treatment of a disease, caries, which affects over 90% of any population group. We have as a discipline failed, in a large part, to embrace the 21^st centaury science that has become commonly used in other medical and dental disciplines. This science includes genetics, probiotics, genomics, molecular biology, tissue engineering and nanotechnology; however in this presentation I will illustrate that, in fact, scientists  from these disciplines have applied them to the diagnosis, prevention and treatment of caries. Using our own work and the work of others I will discuss: the genetic contribution to caries susceptibility; whether probiotics can be used in caries control; using molecular engineering to make cariogenic bacteria into non-cariogenic bacteria; and the use of nanotechnology in the detection of active carious lesions and in lesion repair by the application of a “paint-on-enamel”. Finally, I will discuss applying tissue engineering technology in the repair of dental tissues and a non-invasive technique of treating active caries.