A study of primitive fish fossils reveals the system by which humans, and other jawed vertebrates including sharks, grow new teeth is over 400 million years old.
From sharks to humans, jawed vertebrates have very neat and symmetrical sets of teeth.
"The tight organisation of what grows where, and in what time succession, is crucial to having a dentition that works," Professor Ahlberg said.All modern vertebrates have the same basic system where new teeth emerge from the inside of the jawline and move to the outside.This primitive fish called Radotina, which lived over 400 million years ago, has shed the latest clues on the origin of modern teeth.
"They originate from a central point whereas with modern jawed vertebrates the new teeth form in place behind each older tooth," Professor Ahlberg said. The fossils studied by the researchers were originally found in quarries on the outskirts of Prague where limestone was being split for paving stones 100 years ago.
"This is an amazing discovery and it's a big step in unravelling the origins of teeth," said Kate Trinajstic from Curtin University, who was involved in earlier studies of placoderm teeth.
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