Thailand Invents Crocodile Smile

[LaoPo]

Thailand invents crocodile smile

Bangkok - A team of Thai scientists had successfully produced false teeth and dental transplants using crocodile eggshells and bones as a raw material, media reports said on Saturday.

Upsorn Boonyang, of the Kasetsart University chemistry department team responsible for the breakthough, said the new technology would save Thailand money on imported hydroxyapatite, the main ingredient used in false teeth in the West, the Bangkok Post reported.

Hydroxyapatite, a component in human hard tissue, particularly bones and teeth, is usually derived from chicken egg shells in developed countries.

The Kasetsart scientists decided to try sourcing it from crocodile egg shells and bones instead, since these were in abundant supply from the kingdom's crocodile farms.

Besides tourist attractions, Thailand's crocodile farms produce crocodile skins and meat which are exported to countries such as China.

"In the future, we could reduce the use of imported products and this means people would find the treatment more affordable," Upsorn told the Bangkok Post.

From:

http://www.news24.com/News24/Technology/Ne...2102428,00.html

LaoPo

[rainman]

I wonder if they will break as easily as crocodile egg shells...

[qwertz]

I wonder if they will break as easily as crocodile egg shells...

Or LOS promises?

[eugengeri]

I wonder if they will break as easily as crocodile egg shells...

Or LOS promises?

Or crocodiles like to eat chickens but the chickens can not eat crocodiles - so logical it has to be a better quality...

[new farang]

I'm a little unclear on how this adds up... Thailand is SHORT on chicken eggs and bones, but that shortage, thank goodness, can be made up with the 'abundance' of crocodile eggs and bones? Really? Short on chicken eggs and bones?

I'd guess the breakthrough was more about the fact that the compound could be extracted similarly from crocodile biproducts - which likely wasn't attempted in the west. I'd imagine that there are plenty of raw materials from chicken sources here, though maybe not the facilities to process it down for the ol' teeth here in the Land of Smiles (I like the irony there).

Maybe Thai Visa forum members should do their part by collecting all the chicken bones that would otherwise be piled up in the evening time for our local soi dogs to snack on and conserve them to help with Thailand's shortage on chicken biproducts for teeth-making. We'll call it the C.B.T.S. (Chicken Bones for Toothless Smiles).

[Galong]

Ooo, yet another way to exploit wildlife... why am I not surprised.

[Scott]

Is this an invention or a discovery for starters? It sounds like they are just copying an already known thing and claiming it.

Secondly, is this somehow cheaper or more practical than the current method?

All that said, it is good to see that research is catching on and that there is some experimenting with things going on in the country--that is a good sign!

[kmart]

Is this an invention or a discovery for starters? It sounds like they are just copying an already known thing and claiming it.

Must be a patent on it then?

[DirkGently]

Hello dentist! I'd like some new croc teeth. I'm in a hurry so could you make them snappy!

[larvidchr]

Hello dentist! I'd like some new croc teeth. I'm in a hurry so could you make them snappy!

[qwertz]

A logical follow up to crocodile tears IMO.

[soundman]

A logical follow up to crocodile tears IMO.

A thailand invention for sure...

Soundman.