A biobank of primary teeth within the Norwegian Mother and Child Cohort Study (MoBa) per 2014: A resource for the future

Abstract

The Norwegian Mother and Child Cohort Study (MoBa) is a prospective population-based cohort study including more than 100,000 pregnancies and following the children through childhood, using questionnaires and collecting biological samples. The aim of MoBa is to test specific aetiological hypotheses by estimating the association between exposure and disease, aiming at prevention. A biobank for exfoliated primary teeth collected from the children participating in MoBa has been established (MoBaTooth Biobank). Samples of tooth tissues from the primary dentition can give information about exposure to toxic and essential elements through foetal life and early infancy. Prenatally and postnatally formed tooth tissues permanently document early exposures unlike other biomarkers, as teeth form incrementally at a known rate. Results from tooth analyses will be coupled to corresponding information in the multiple questionnaires and data from analysis of other biological samples collected by MoBa. Invitations to donate one or more teeth are sent to all mothers/children in the period 2008-2016, when the child is 6¾ years old. By November 2014 21,748 participants had been recorded into the MoBaTooth database donating altogether 28,272 teeth (1.3 teeth per child). The response rate was 24%, but there is a lag of more than one year in the response. Data from the tooth biobank can supply MoBa with important additional information on the uptake of trace elements during foetal life and early infancy. This information can illuminate causal factors of health and disease in the future.This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution Licence, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Cohort Profile Update: The Norwegian Mother and Child Cohort Study (MoBa)

“…Primary teeth were collected when the child was between 6 and 7 years. 13 Biological materials have also been collected from participants who take part in substudies. One example is a study to understand causes and trajectories of autism spectrum disorders.…”

Cryopreservation of Dental Stem Cells

“…The National tooth bank was opened soon after in 2008. Another was open in Norway thanks to the collaboration between Norwegian Institute of Public Health and the University of Bergen (27). There are also commercially licensed tooth banks in the UK and the USA.…”