A conserved tooth resorption mechanism in modern and fossil snakes

Whether snakes evolved their elongated, limbless bodies or their specialized skulls and teeth first is a central question in squamate evolution. Identifying features shared between extant and fossil snakes is therefore key to unraveling the early evolution of this iconic reptile group. One promising...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:	Nature communications Vol. 14; no. 1; p. 742
Main Authors:	LeBlanc, A. R. H., Palci, A., Anthwal, N., Tucker, A. S., Araújo, R., Pereira, M. F. C., Caldwell, M. W.
Format:	Journal Article
Language:	English
Published:	London Nature Publishing Group UK 10-02-2023 Nature Publishing Group Nature Portfolio
Subjects:	14/63 631/1647/1407/1555 631/1647/328/2240 631/181/414 631/601/2721 Animals Biological Evolution Dental pulp Evolution Fossils Fossils - diagnostic imaging Histology Humanities and Social Sciences multidisciplinary Odontoclasts Phylogeny Reptiles Reptiles & amphibians Reptiles - anatomy & histology Root resorption Science Science (multidisciplinary) Snakes Snakes - anatomy & histology Teeth Tooth - diagnostic imaging Tooth Resorption
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Summary:	Whether snakes evolved their elongated, limbless bodies or their specialized skulls and teeth first is a central question in squamate evolution. Identifying features shared between extant and fossil snakes is therefore key to unraveling the early evolution of this iconic reptile group. One promising candidate is their unusual mode of tooth replacement, whereby teeth are replaced without signs of external tooth resorption. We reveal through histological analysis that the lack of resorption pits in snakes is due to the unusual action of odontoclasts, which resorb dentine from within the pulp of the tooth. Internal tooth resorption is widespread in extant snakes, differs from replacement in other reptiles, and is even detectable via non-destructive μCT scanning, providing a method for identifying fossil snakes. We then detected internal tooth resorption in the fossil snake Yurlunggur , and one of the oldest snake fossils, Portugalophis , suggesting that it is one of the earliest innovations in Pan-Serpentes, likely preceding limb loss. Living snakes replace their teeth without external resorption. Here, the authors use histology to show that odontoclasts resorb dentine internally and investigate this mechanism in fossil snakes.
Bibliography:	ObjectType-Article-1 SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1 ObjectType-Feature-2 content type line 23
ISSN:	2041-1723 2041-1723
DOI:	10.1038/s41467-023-36422-2