Genetic Engineering in Pediatric dentistry

Genetic engineering is the direct manipulation of an organism's genes using biotechnology, it is used to change the genetic makeup of cells, including the transfer of genes within and across species boundaries to produce improved or novel organisms. Isaac Asimov said that "the advance of genetic engineering makes it quite conceivable that we will begin to design our own evolutionary progress". Applications of gene therapy to dental and oral problems illustrate the potential impact of this technology on dentistry. In the past six years, remarkable progress has been made in the field of gene therapy, including several areas relevant to dental practice: caries prevention and management, bone repair, salivary glands, treating tumors etc., which clearly suggests that genetic engineering can create drastic changes in the prevention and treatment modalities of different pediatric as well as other dental problems.