Taurodontism

Taurodontism (meaning 'bull teeth') is characterized by large pulp chambers, with changes usually most striking in the molars. The taurodont tooth lies deep in alveolar bone. The converse situation is cynodont (teeth with small pulp chambers and bodies lying totally above alveolar bone as in the dog--Gr. kyon). Taurodontism was a frequent finding in early man and is found today in races such as the Eskimos who use their teeth for cutting hides. Coon (1962) suggested that the trait might have selective advantage to such groups. The genetics is likely to be polygenic. Shaw (1928) claimed that the trait is inherited as an autosomal recessive. Dominant inheritance was suggested by the 2-generation pedigrees reported by Goldstein and Gottlieb (1973) and Gamer and Zusman (1967). Witkop and Rao (1971) found no affected parents in 8 cases they investigated. Jaspers and Witkop (1980) pointed out association of taurodontism with X-chromosome aneuploidy. They also pointed out that it is a frequent trait, found in about 2.5% of adult Caucasians. While it may be viewed as an extension of a continuous trait of pulp chamber size, it occurs also in syndromes, especially those having an ectodermal defect, e.g., trichodentoosseous syndrome (190320) and otodental dysplasia (166750). The family reported by Haunfelder (1967) and by Stenvik et al. (1972) had affected sibs with a combination of scanty hair, oligodontia, and taurodontism (see 272980).