tooth tooth a tooth (pl: teeth) is a hard, calcified structure found in the jaws (or mouths) of many vertebrates and used to break down food. some animals, particularly carnivores and omnivores, also use teeth to help with capturing or wounding prey, tearing food, for defensive purposes, to intimidate other animals often including their own, or to carry prey or their young. the roots of teeth are covered by gums. teeth are not made of bone, but rather of multiple tissues of varying density and hardness that originate from the outermost embryonic germ layer, the ectoderm. this article is about the structure found in many animals. for the teeth of humans, see human tooth. for other uses, see tooth (disambiguation). a chimpanzee displaying its teeth the general structure of teeth is similar across the vertebrates, although there is considerable variation in their form and position. the teeth of mammals have deep roots, and this pattern is also found in some fish, and in crocodilians. in most teleost fish, however, the teeth are attached to the outer surface of the bone, while in lizards they are attached to the inner surface of the jaw by one side. in cartilaginous fish, such as sharks, the teeth are attached by tough ligaments to the hoops of cartilage that form the jaw. monophyodonts are animals that develop only one set of teeth, while diphyodonts grow an early set of deciduous teeth and a later set of permanent or "adult" teeth. polyphyodonts grow many sets of teeth. for example, sharks, grow a new set of teeth every two weeks to replace worn teeth. most extant mammals including humans are diphyodonts, but there are exceptions including elephants, kangaroos, and manatees, all of which are polyphyodonts. rodent incisors grow and wear away continually through gnawing, which helps maintain relatively constant length. the industry of the beaver is due in part to this qualification. many rodents such as voles and guinea pigs, but not mice, as well as leporidae like rabbits, have continuously growing molars in addition to incisors. also, tusks (in tusked mammals) grow almost throughout life. teeth are not always attached to the jaw, as they are in mammals. in many reptiles and fish, teeth are attached to the palate or to the floor of the mouth, forming additional rows inside those on the jaws proper. some teleosts even have teeth in the pharynx. while not true teeth in the usual sense, the dermal denticles of sharks are almost identical in structure and are likely to have the same evolutionary origin. indeed, teeth appear to have first evolved in sharks, and are not found in the more primitive jawless fish – while lampreys do have tooth-like structures on the tongue, these are in fact, composed of keratin, not of dentine or enamel, and bear no relationship to true teeth. though "modern" teeth-like structures with dentine and enamel have been found in late conodonts, they are now supposed to have evolved independently of later vertebrates' teeth. living amphibians typically have small teeth, or none at all, since they commonly feed only on soft foods. in reptiles, teeth are generally simple and conical in shape, although there is some variation between species, most notably the venom-injecting fangs of snakes. the pattern of incisors, canines, premolars and molars is found only in mammals, and to varying extents, in their evolutionary ancestors. the numbers of these types of teeth vary greatly between species; zoologists use a standardised dental formula to describe the precise pattern in any given group. etymology the word tooth comes from proto-germanic *tanþs derived from the proto-indo-european *h₁dent-, which was composed of the root *h₁ed- ("to eat") plus the active participle suffix -nt, therefore literally meaning "that which eats". the irregular plural form teeth is the result of germanic umlaut whereby vowels immediately preceding a high vocalic in the following syllable were raised. as the nominative plural ending of the proto-germanic consonant stems (to which *tanþs belonged) was *-iz, the root vowel in the plural form *tanþiz (changed by this point to *tą̄þi via unrelated phonological processes) was raised to /œː/, and later unrounded to /eː/, resulting in the tōþ/tēþ alternation attested from old english. cf. also old english bōc/bēċ, "book/books" and mūs/mȳs, "mouse/mice", from proto-germanic *bōks/bōkiz and *mūs/mūsiz respectively. cognate with latin dēns, greek ὀδούς odous, and sanskrit dát. origin teeth are assumed to have evolved either from ectoderm denticles (scales, much like those on the skin of sharks) that folded and integrated into the mouth (called the "outside–in" theory), or from endoderm pharyngeal teeth (primarily formed in the pharynx of jawless vertebrates) (the "inside–out" theory). in addition, there is another theory stating that neural crest gene regulatory network, and neural crest-derived ectomesenchyme are the key to generate teeth (with any epithelium, either ectoderm or endoderm). the genes governing tooth development in mammals are homologous to those involved in the development of fish scales. study of a tooth plate of a fossil of the extinct fish romundina stellina showed that the teeth and scales were made of the same tissues, also found in mammal teeth, lending support to the theory that teeth evolved as a modification of scales. mammals teeth are among the most distinctive (and long-lasting) features of mammal species. paleontologists use teeth to identify fossil species and determine their relationships. the shape of the animal's teeth are related to its diet. for example, plant matter is hard to digest, so herbivores have many molars for chewing and grinding. carnivores, on the other hand, have canine teeth to kill prey and to tear meat. mammals, in general, are diphyodont, meaning that they develop two sets of teeth. in humans, the first set (the "baby", "milk", "primary" or "deciduous" set) normally starts to appear at about six months of age, although some babies are born with one or more visible teeth, known as neonatal teeth. normal tooth eruption at about six months is known as teething and can be painful. kangaroos, elephants, and manatees are unusual among mammals because they are polyphyodonts. aardvark in aardvarks, teeth lack enamel and have many pulp tubules, hence the name of the order tubulidentata. canines main article: canine tooth in dogs, the teeth are less likely than humans to form dental cavities because of the very high ph of dog saliva, which prevents enamel from demineralizing. sometimes called cuspids, these teeth are shaped like points (cusps) and are used for tearing and grasping food. cetaceans like human teeth, whale teeth have polyp-like protrusions located on the root surface of the tooth. these polyps are made of cementum in both species, but in human teeth, the protrusions are located on the outside of the root, while in whales the nodule is located on the inside of the pulp chamber. while the roots of human teeth are made of cementum on the outer surface, whales have cementum on the entire surface of the tooth with a very small layer of enamel at the tip. this small enamel layer is only seen in older whales where the cementum has been worn away to show the underlying enamel. the toothed whale is a suborder of the cetaceans characterized by having teeth. the teeth differ considerably among the species. they may be numerous, with some dolphins bearing over 100 teeth in their jaws. on the other hand, the narwhals have a giant unicorn-like tusk, which is a tooth containing millions of sensory pathways and used for sensing during feeding, navigation, and mating. it is the most neurologically complex tooth known. beaked whales are almost toothless, with only bizarre teeth found in males. these teeth may be used for feeding but also for demonstrating aggression and showmanship. primates main articles: human tooth and dental anatomy in humans (and most other primates) there are usually 20 primary (also "baby" or "milk") teeth, and later up to 32 permanent teeth. four of these 32 may be third molars or wisdom teeth, although these are not present in all adults, and may be removed surgically later in life. among primary teeth, 10 of them are usually found in the maxilla (i.e. upper jaw) and the other 10 in the mandible (i.e. lower jaw). among permanent teeth, 16 are found in the maxilla and the other 16 in the mandible. most of the teeth have uniquely distinguishing features. horse an adult horse has between 36 and 44 teeth. the enamel and dentin layers of horse teeth are intertwined. all horses have 12 premolars, 12 molars, and 12 incisors. generally, all male equines also have four canine teeth (called tushes) between the molars and incisors. however, few female horses (less than 28%) have canines, and those that do usually have only one or two, which many times are only partially erupted. a few horses have one to four wolf teeth, which are vestigial premolars, with most of those having only one or two. they are equally common in male and female horses and much more likely to be on the upper jaw. if present these can cause problems as they can interfere with the horse's bit contact. therefore, wolf teeth are commonly removed. horse teeth can be used to estimate the animal's age. between birth and five years, age can be closely estimated by observing the eruption pattern on milk teeth and then permanent teeth. by age five, all permanent teeth have usually erupted. the horse is then said to have a "full" mouth. after the age of five, age can only be conjectured by studying the wear patterns on the incisors, shape, the angle at which the incisors meet, and other factors. the wear of teeth may also be affected by diet, natural abnormalities, and cribbing. two horses of the same age may have different wear patterns. a horse's incisors, premolars, and molars, once fully developed, continue to erupt as the grinding surface is worn down through chewing. a young adult horse will have teeth which are 110–130 mm (4.5–5 inches) long, with the majority of the crown remaining below the gumline in the dental socket. the rest of the tooth will slowly emerge from the jaw, erupting about 3 mm (1⁄8 in) each year, as the horse ages. when the animal reaches old age, the crowns of the teeth are very short and the teeth are often lost altogether. very old horses, if lacking molars, may need to have their fodder ground up and soaked in water to create a soft mush for them to eat in order to obtain adequate nutrition. proboscideans section through the ivory tusk of a mammoth elephants' tusks are specialized incisors for digging food up and fighting. some elephant teeth are similar to those in manatees, and it is notable that elephants are believed to have undergone an aquatic phase in their evolution. at birth, elephants have a total of 28 molar plate-like grinding teeth not including the tusks. these are organized into four sets of seven successively larger teeth which the elephant will slowly wear through during its lifetime of chewing rough plant material. only four teeth are used for chewing at a given time, and as each tooth wears out, another tooth moves forward to take its place in a process similar to a conveyor belt. the last and largest of these teeth usually becomes exposed when the animal is around 40 years of age, and will often last for an additional 20 years. when the last of these teeth has fallen out, regardless of the elephant's age, the animal will no longer be able to chew food and will die of starvation. rabbit rabbits and other lagomorphs usually shed their deciduous teeth before (or very shortly after) their birth, and are usually born with their permanent teeth. the teeth of rabbits complement their diet, which consists of a wide range of vegetation. since many of the foods are abrasive enough to cause attrition, rabbit teeth grow continuously throughout life. rabbits have a total of 6 incisors, three upper premolars, three upper molars, two lower premolars, and two lower molars on each side. there are no canines. three to four millimeters of the tooth is worn away by incisors every week, whereas the posterior teeth require a month to wear away the same amount. the incisors and cheek teeth of