This week’s post is from Kelsey Stilson, a PhD student in biology at the University of Chicago, specialising in neurobiology and functional anatomy. It’s a post with teeth, in more ways than one! If you would like to write for Anatomy to You, get in touch via Facebook or Twitter. I study opossums. Specifically, I study…
Tag: mammal
Sloths’ mysterious teeth decoded
Like most mammals, we humans have a variety of tooth types for different purposes: incisors, for gripping, canines for ripping and tearing, and molars (also pre-molars) for grinding and chewing. But one group, known as the Xenarthra (a particularly excellent name meaning “strange joints”), have very simple dentition, with similar, unrooted teeth which lack enamel and…
Cartilage and encroaching bone in the developing mouse skeleton
This shot of the dorsal neck of a developing mouse embryo visually shows the process of skeletal growth found in all bony vertebrates. The widespread blue stain (Alcian blue) reveals the extensive cartilaginous blueprint for the growing skeleton, which extends by the division of chondrocytes (cartilage-producing cells) guided by signalling molecules across the embryo. The…
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