Genetic analysis of dental traits in 82 pairs of female-female twins.

OBJECTIVE: To study systematically the heritability of dental traits. METHODS: Eighty-two pairs of female-female twins from 6 to 12 years old were collected. Twin zygosity diagnosis was made by DNA fingerprinting. The study was composed of questionnaires, oral examinations, model measurements, and panoramic radiographs. The same analytic method was used for each of the dental traits and comparison of their heritability was made. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: According to the significance of difference and the level of heritability, the dental traits were divided into four types: strong, median, weak, and weaker heritability. The number of third molars present, tooth size, arch size, and upper lateral incisor malformation were under strong genetic influence; hypodontia indicated a median heritability; a weak heritability was seen in tooth eruption and caries, and a weaker heritability was found in occlusal traits. The division made it easy to learn the genetic characteristics of dental traits systematically and supplemented the theory of dental genetics.