COMPARISON OF THE CHEMICAL-COMPOSITION OF DENTIN AND ENAMEL IN REPTILIAN AND MAMMALIAN TEETH

P and Ca contents differ in the dentine and the enamel of recent verte brate teeth. Statistical analyses of the major and minor chemical elem ents corroborate these differences between enamel and dentine, in rept iles on one hand, and mammals on the other hand. Each tissue shows a c haracteristic chemical composition. Dentine shows high S and Mg conten ts, enamel show high Na and Cl contents; moreover, dentine and enamel are not similar in reptiles and mammals. The Mg content of the mammal dentine depends on the growth of the tooth.