| Title |
First record of plicidentine in Synapsida and patterns of tooth root shape change in Early Permian sphenacodontians
|
|---|---|
| Published in |
The Science of Nature, September 2014
|
| DOI | 10.1007/s00114-014-1228-5 |
| Pubmed ID | |
| Authors |
Kirstin S. Brink, Aaron R. H. LeBlanc, Robert R. Reisz |
| Abstract |
Recent histological studies have revealed a diversity of dental features in Permo-Carboniferous tetrapods. Here, we report on the occurrence of plicidentine (infolded dentine around the base of the tooth root) in Sphenacodontia, the first such documentation in Synapsida, the clade that includes mammals. Five taxa were examined histologically, Ianthodon schultzei, Sphenacodon ferocior, Dimetrodon limbatus, Dimetrodon grandis, and Secodontosaurus obtusidens. The tooth roots of Ianthodon possess multiple folds, which is generally viewed as the primitive condition for amniotes. Sphenacodon and D. limbatus have distinctive "four-leaf clover"-shaped roots in cross section, whereas Secodontosaurus has an elongate square shape with only subtle folding. The most derived and largest taxon examined in this study, D. grandis, has rounded roots in cross section and therefore no plicidentine. This pattern of a loss of plicidentine in sphenacodontids supports previous functional hypotheses of plicidentine, where teeth with shallow roots require folds to increase the area of attachment to the tooth-bearing element, whereas teeth with long roots do not. This pattern may also reflect differences in diet between co-occurring sphenacodontids as well as changes in feeding niche through time, specifically in the apex predator Dimetrodon. |
X Demographics
The data shown below were collected from the profiles of 12 X users who shared this research output. Click here to find out more about how the information was compiled.
Geographical breakdown
| Country | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Canada | 5 | 42% |
| Brazil | 1 | 8% |
| Australia | 1 | 8% |
| United States | 1 | 8% |
| Unknown | 4 | 33% |
Demographic breakdown
| Type | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Scientists | 7 | 58% |
| Members of the public | 5 | 42% |
Mendeley readers
The data shown below were compiled from readership statistics for 25 Mendeley readers of this research output. Click here to see the associated Mendeley record.
Geographical breakdown
| Country | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Unknown | 25 | 100% |
Demographic breakdown
| Readers by professional status | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Student > Ph. D. Student | 5 | 20% |
| Student > Bachelor | 4 | 16% |
| Researcher | 2 | 8% |
| Student > Master | 2 | 8% |
| Student > Doctoral Student | 1 | 4% |
| Other | 4 | 16% |
| Unknown | 7 | 28% |
| Readers by discipline | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Agricultural and Biological Sciences | 8 | 32% |
| Earth and Planetary Sciences | 6 | 24% |
| Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology | 3 | 12% |
| Medicine and Dentistry | 1 | 4% |
| Unknown | 7 | 28% |
Attention Score in Context
This research output has an Altmetric Attention Score of 11. This is our high-level measure of the quality and quantity of online attention that it has received. This Attention Score, as well as the ranking and number of research outputs shown below, was calculated when the research output was last mentioned on 11 April 2018.
All research outputs
#3,151,920
of 24,739,153 outputs
Outputs from The Science of Nature
#382
of 2,245 outputs
Outputs of similar age
#31,756
of 242,789 outputs
Outputs of similar age from The Science of Nature
#6
of 25 outputs
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