THE SILVER IMPREGNATION METHOD APPLIED TO THE DENTIN MATRIX OF RACHITIC RATS AND TO THAT OF RATS WITH HEALING RICKETS

¹ Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Medical School, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa

1. The incisor teeth of rachitic rats, and those of rachitic animals in which nealing had been induced by various procedures, have been stained with hematoxylin and eosin and by the method of silver impregnation, and the appearances compared.

2. As has been reported for other tissues and for teeth from rats treated in other ways, so here also basophilic tissues were found to be argyrophobe, and vice versa.

3. In both low Ca and low P rickets, differentiation of the dentin matrix into fibrils and cementing substance takes place, but calcification is delayed.

4. Agents causing calcification to recommence in the teeth of rachitic rats have at least two actions: they cause calcification of the cementing substance to be accelerated and finally to occur in the normal situation; and they also affect the differentiation of new matrix in such a way that more cementing substance and fewer fibrils are laid down.