Prehistoric dental calculus gives evidence for coca in early coastal Ecuador

Coca chewing in prehistoric coastal Peru: Dental evidence

“…The finding of cervical-root caries with alveolar bone resorption in the lower molar region in our study is consistent with reports of high caries incidence (Langsjoen, 1996) and alveolar resorption in the buccal region (Turner, 1979), which these scholars associate with coca chewing. Meanwhile, our results cast doubt on several other theories on the effects of coca chewing on teeth, including heavy calculus formation (Klepinger et al, 1977); dark brown tooth crowns (Elzay et al, 1977); brown or green-colored accretions on teeth (Thompson, 1903); and calcareous accretions (Leigh, 1937). While posterior tooth discoloration was occasionally observed, neither staining nor calculus formation was found to be a reliable indicator of coca usage.…”

“…Unfortunately, there has been no systematic attempt to accomplish this. The presumed oral pathological effects of coca-leaf chewing are numerous and include: heavy calculus formation (Klepinger et al, 1977); dark brown tooth crowns (Elzay et al, 1977); brown or green-colored accretions on teeth (Thompson, 1903); calcareous accretions (Leigh, 1937); buccal alveolar bone erosion (Turner, 1993); and antemortem posterior tooth loss (Langsjoen, 1996). Unfortunately, systematic evaluation of these factors as coca indicators is lacking.…”

“…Hair follicles easily capture the metabolite and provide an accurate method of testing for coca consumption, either through chewing or by drinking coca tea. While hair analysis Aufderheide et al, 1991) provides convincing biological evidence for coca use in prehistoric populations, research on the association between various dental signatures and coca-leaf chewing (Klepinger et al 1977;Elzay et al, 1977;Thompson, 1903;Leigh, 1937;Turner, 1993;Langsjoen, 1996) has been speculative at best. Thus, there is a clear need for a more systematic evaluation of the dental evidence.…”

“…Theories about the prehistoric distribution of coca-leaf chewing in ancient Andean peoples have been the subject of considerable debate, particularly the pervasiveness and geographical distribution of coca chewing (e.g., Leigh, 1937;Murra, 1986;Naranjo, 1981). In attempting to understand the distribution of coca chewing in the ancient Andes, studies have been conducted in multiple disciplines, including biology Aufderheide et al, 1991); dental anthropology (Thompson, 1903;Leigh, 1937;Klepinger et al, 1977;Elzay et al, 1977;Turner, 1993;Langsjoen, 1996); archaeology (Lanning, 1967;Lumbreras, 1974;Menzel, 1977, Naranjo, 1981Moseley, 1992); and botany (Molina et al, 1985;Plowman, 1984Plowman, , 1985. The findings and conclusions from these reports, however, have not always been consistent.…”

Dental calculus as a source of ancient alkaloids: Detection of nicotine by LC-MS in calculus samples from the Americas

“…In the last 10 years, there has been a notable uptick in archaeological studies that exploit ancient dental calculus to reveal new information about the past. Some of these studies have focused on bulk samples of calculus employing analytical techniques such as scanning electron microscopy (Charlier et al, 2010;Power et al, 2014), X-Ray Diffraction (Klepinger et al, 1977), or stable isotopes (Scott and Poulson, 2012;Poulson et al, 2013;Eerkens et al, 2014;Salazar-García et al, 2014). Other approaches attempt to break calculus down into constituent parts, for example, to identify microfossil starch grains or phytoliths (Dudgeon and Tromp, 2014;Hardy et al, 2009;Henry et al, 2010;Piperno and Dillehay, 2008), or specific biomolecules, such as DNA (Adler et al, 2013;Preus et al, 2011;Warinner et al, 2014aWarinner et al, , 2014bWeyrich et al, 2015) or proteins (Warinner et al, 2014c).…”