Brief Communication: An Incipient Coronal Caries Lesion on a Neandertal Molar Tooth From El Sidrón Cave (Northern Spain)

Abstract

Objectives

Here, we present the findings of an incipient caries lesion on a permanent upper left second molar attributed to an adult male Neandertal individual from El Sidrón Cave. This study presents new data regarding the antiquity of human caries lesions, their development, and the possibility of the para-masticatory behavior component as a contributory factor in their origin, at least in Homo neanderthalensis.

Materials and Methods

The tooth was examined using a μCT scan to confirm the lesion and to evaluate its extent. Element chemical analysis was performed to check the decalcification on both the lesion edges and pristine surfaces (as carious lesions often involve demineraization of the tissues) using an environmental scanning electron microscope.

Results

The lesion was located on the occlusal surface on the protocone cusp, a small furrow filled with sediment, 2.6 mm in length and 0.78 mm in width, and mineral loss on the white surrounding area compared to the apparently intact adjacent enamel.

Discussion

This pit lesion resembles the appearance of other Neandertal carious lesions, all from temperate environments. Calcium and phosphorus loss has been documented as has been characterized on dental caries. Regarding the etiology, we propose that an intense masticatory and para-masticatory activity combined with evidence for a mixed diet with a high carbohydrate component, the molar tooth may have developed a crack lesion, which was then colonized by a bacterial biofilm that deepened into the dentine and developed this small channel-shaped caries.