Artificial masticator : Applications

AM2 has been developed to meet various demands from the fields of Basic Research, Pharmacy, and Animal Food, from the Medical or Dental sectors, thus allowing to dispens with the constraints inherent to in vivo studies.

1. Basic Research is a sphere where the use of AM2 is most appropriate and can bring a lot of information when studying the physiology of mastication in a target population or in the field of nutriotional research for example. Indeed controlling the different mastication parameters allows us to assess the consequences of various factors on the formation of the bolus (teeth or no teeth, saliva, muscular forces simulating various populations... Collecting the whole bolus after mastication by AM2, together with the addition of artificial saliva, is a major asset when analyzing the physical-chemical characteristics of the bolus, at any time. Lastly it is possible to carry out nutritional studies since the collection of the bolus and the released liquids allows us to analyze the components of nutritional interest.
2. Farm-produce compagnies must meet the consumer's demands, that is they must vouch for the sanitary, sensory and dietary qualities of the produce. The development of new produce requires the joint optimization of both organoleptic (texture, colour, flavour, ...) and nutritional qualities. The use of AM2 can for instance provide the farm-produce industry with solutions to expand its current strategy to develop new produce. AM2 can indeed contribute to a better knowledge of mechanical degradation, of the structural modifications of food in the mouth. This information can make it easier to adapt the texture and the food to the nutritional needs and the physiological capacities of the target population, while retaining the hedonistic quality of the food.
3. The Pharmaceutical industry can be interested in the use of AM2 to assess the in-mouth performance of various galenic formulations.
4. The animal food industry could also benefit from AM2 since the development of jaws specially devised for given species can prove useful to test in vitro the "masticability" and the transformation of foods.
5. The medical field a better understanding of the physio-pathology of mastication in people with risk factor can be expected (edentulousness, trauma sequels, oral pathologies related to ageing or a neuro motor disorder, and all the more so to the combination of one or several of these factors). AM2 can also provide information in fields that cannot be tested through human experimentation (non-cooperating subject, bolus textures that can compromise swallowing). The concerned populations are quite numerous and the repercussions of bad mastication on the general state of health are significant and underestimated. In France for instance it is estimated that two million people are totaly edentulous and that many more are dependent.
6. In the dental field it is absolutely essential to test the materials used (ceramics, resins, metals, ...) in masticating conditions. The dental arches can be fitted with tooth core on wich crown restorations can be adapted to test wear of materials for instance.