Shark teeth have naturally built-in toothpaste! The surface of shark teeth contains 100 per cent fluoride, the active ingredient in most toothpastes. They also have the handy ability to replace their teeth several times during their lives, because their teeth sometimes end up stuck in prey or are otherwise forced out.
According to the study, their teeth are perfectly designed for such tasks, never suffering from cavities.
While shark teeth contain the mineral fluoroapatite (fluorinated calcium phosphate), the teeth of humans and other mammals contain hydroxyapatite, which is an inorganic constituent also found in bone, explained co-author Matthias Epple.
“In order to make teeth more acid resistant, toothpaste often contains fluoride,” Discovery News quoted Epple, a professor of inorganic chemistry at the University of Duisburg-Essen, as saying.
“In the surface of human teeth after brushing, a small amount — much less than 1 percent — of hydroxide is exchanged by fluoride.
“In contrast, (the surface of) shark teeth contains 100 percent fluoride. In principle, sharks should not suffer from caries. As they live in water and as they change their teeth regularly, dental protection should not be a problem for sharks,” he said.
Credit : Hindustan Times
Picture Credit : Google
