GENETICS: A MODIFICATION IN DENTISTRY

Abstract

Genetics is a branch of biology which can be dened as the study of genes and heredity. Genetics when seen in relation to oral health can show various manifestations ranging from developmental disturbances to precancerous and cancerous lesions. Signicant advances in research methods and newly emerging partnerships between private and public sector interests are creating new possibilities for utilization of genetic information for the diagnosis and treatment of human diseases. The availability and application of genetic information to the understanding of normal and abnormal human growth and development are fundamentally changing the way we approach the study of human diseases. As a result, the issues and principles of medical genetics are coming to bear across all disciplines of health care. In this review, we discuss some of the potential applications of human molecular genetics for the diagnosis and treatment of oral diseases. This discussion is presented in the context of the ongoing technological advances and conceptual changes that are occurring in the eld of medical genetics.