NIDCR News 2020

Making more durable fillings that can withstand the tough environment of the mouth takes some chemical ingenuity. Research supported by NIDCR is addressing the challenge.

Statement from NIDCR Acting Director Lawrence Tabak on the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) report: Temporomandibular Disorders: Priorities for Research and Care.

An NIDCR-supported study uncovered a new role for nerves in oral cancer progression. Tumors send messages that transform neurons into cancer-promoting agents; targeting this crosstalk could lead to more effective cancer treatments.

Whether it’s saliva, insulin, or sweat, we rely on our secretions. It matters that just the right amounts of just the right proteins go where they should. Secretory failures lead to diseases, including dry mouth disorders.

NIDCR scientists’ discovery of a new type of cellular machinery may shed light on how organs such as salivary glands form during development and how they’re sometimes breached by cancer in adulthood.