Mackie, Meaghan, Radini, Anita orcid.org/0000-0002-2099-2639 and Speller, Camilla Filomena orcid.org/0000-0001-7128-9903 (2017) The Sustainability of Dental Calculus for Archaeological Research. In: Favreau, Julien and Patalano, Robert, (eds.) Shallow Pasts, Endless Horiozons: Sustainability & Archaeology:Proceedings of the 48th Annual Chacmool Archaeology Conference. , pp. 74-81.
Abstract
Dental calculus is a mineralized plaque biofilm formed by microbiota of the oral microbiome. Until recently, the vast research potential of dental calculus for archaeological study was not fully appreciated and it was often discarded. It is now recognized that dental calculus entombs and preserves valuable microfossils and biomolecules within its matrix. While microscopic and bimolecular analysis of calculus is destructive, judicious sampling of relatively small quantities of material can provide unique information on ancient health and diet. Additionally, dental calculus is not classified as human tissue, but as an ectopic growth, and in some cases may provide an alternative approach to the destructive analysis of human skeletal remains. We present a case study recovering proteins, DNA and microscopic debris from Roman Age individuals to demonstrate the important insights into diet, health and disease that can be obtained from even minute quantities of dental calculus.
Metadata
Item Type: | Proceedings Paper |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Editors: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2017 The Chacmool Archaeological Association of the University of Calgary |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of York |
Academic Units: | The University of York > Faculty of Arts and Humanities (York) > Archaeology (York) |
Depositing User: | Pure (York) |
Date Deposited: | 23 Feb 2017 09:40 |
Last Modified: | 02 Apr 2025 23:31 |
Published Version: | https://doi.org/10.11575/PRISM/10231 |
Status: | Published |
Identification Number: | 10.11575/PRISM/10231 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:112715 |