Histology and Trace Elements of Tooth Root Dentin for Age Estimation
Research type
Research Study
Full title
A combined histology and trace element analysis of human tooth root dentin to improve age-at death estimations for adult skeletons.
IRAS ID
368351
Contact name
Clarice Skinner
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Kent
Duration of Study in the UK
7 years, 0 months, 1 days
Research summary
Estimating age-at-death for adult skeletons is a fundamental component of constructing a biological profile in forensic and anthropological contexts. However, existing age-estimation methods for adults often produce large standard errors, frequently exceeding 10 years. This study aims to improve the accuracy of adult age estimation using permanent dentition, with a particular focus on tooth roots.
To achieve this, two historic anonymous dental samples will be analysed: 115 European permanent teeth and 200 southern African permanent teeth. All specimens are of known biological sex and known age at extraction and both collections will be securely stored in the University of Kent’s lock-down histology laboratory. The European sample is curated by Professor Christopher Dean at University College London and will be transported to the University of Kent. The southern African collection is curated and stored at the University of Kent and has already received favourable ethical approval in December 2024 from the NHS Research Ethics Sub-Committee (REC reference: 24/NS/0145; IRAS ID: 350128) for an ongoing PhD project.
The teeth will be sectioned using standard histological techniques to expose the internal structure of the root. Dentin, the primary component of the tooth root, will be examined under light microscopy to reconstruct root formation rates and to assess the extent of age-related dentin infilling. In addition, the elemental and isotopic composition of the tooth roots will be analysed in relation to age. The study will also investigate the relationship between age and incremental growth lines in cementum at the root surface (cementum annulations).
The resulting data will be used to correlate age with root dentin characteristics and to develop a new method for estimating age-at-death from permanent teeth. This method aims to provide improved accuracy for adult age estimation compared to current available approaches.
REC name
London - Central Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
26/LO/0258
Date of REC Opinion
1 Apr 2026
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion