Iron acts as a protective layer. This keeps the serrated edges of the teeth sharp and ready to use at a moment's notice. Deadly predators, these animals eat any type of meat, from small reptiles and birds to horses. To do this, they have curved teeth similar to those of carnivorous dinosaurs.
For one of the study's authors, Aaron LeBlanc, the research could provide more information about the composition of human teeth. “If we want to understand why our teeth look the way they do or why they are irreplaceable, it’s important to go back and look at different species of animals and try to understand how teeth have changed over the past million years,” he explained in a university video.
This could be used in the future to help develop more acid-resistant materials to mitigate tooth erosion.
Aaron LeBlanc
To understand the chemical composition of Komodo dragon teeth, scientists searched museums for the animals' skulls and teeth. They analyzed the teeth of Ganas, a Komodo dragon that lived at London Zoo.
Relationship with dinosaurs
The researchers aimed to understand the eating habits of carnivorous dinosaurs and whether they used their teeth in the same way as Komodo dragons. However, it is not yet possible to monitor iron levels in these now-extinct animals. Scientists believe that chemical changes that occur during fossilization alter the concentration of the substance.
