Deoxypyridinoline crosslinks in human dentin and estimation of age

A new biochemical method for estimation of dental age from human dentin is presented. An adaptation and modification of a dentin protein extraction pr otocol was developed by which deoxypyridinoline crosslinks were measured us ing an enzyme immunoassay technique. Deoxypyridinoline, a non-reducible col lagen crosslink, was measured in human dentin samples from permanent indivi dual molars. The measurement of this protein ill dentin samples from 22 pat ients with ages ranging from 15 to 73 years old was carried out to obtain a n estimate of age at death. By linens regression between deoxypyridinoline values and age, equations for age calculations were computed. The error bet ween the estimated age and the known age at extraction was calculated. Our results show that this method produces an expected associated error on cali bration averaging 14.9 years about the mean estimated values, at a 65% leve l of confidence. Values of sensitivities and specificities were calculated for deoxypyridinoline at different ages. We conclude that determination of deoxypyridinoline in human dentin extracts is a new and reliable procedure, potentially suitable for most forensic laboratories and which could be a u seful tool to estimate human dental age. This method could be considered as an alternative method to calculate dental age, contributing to a more accu rate estimation of chronological ape when used in addition to other morphol ogical or biochemical dental methods.