Читать книгу Zoo and Wild Animal Dentistry - Группа авторов - Страница 19

One of the dental features distinguishing the dentition of reptiles from mammals is their enamel formation. Reptiles have non‐prismatic enamel while mammals have prismatic enamel. Reptile enamel is characterized by greater structural variety and lesser complexity than mammals. The evolution of non‐prismatic enamel to prismatic enamel was probably the evolution of Tomes' processes in modern man. This process is the change from flat secretory surfaces to a complex assortment of enamel corrugation in mammals, which secretes prismatic enamel.

How did mammalian dentition evolve from these prehistoric reptiles? Many theories have been proposed. Unfortunately, an adequate picture of the diversity of organization and dental evolution that existed in this class of animals during the Mesozoic era is not clear.