A computed tomographic study of the molar teeth of Babyrousa spp.

Alastair Macdonald*, Bianca Ziehmer, Andrew Kitchener, Magnus Gelang, Björn Åblad, Ruth Lintonsson, Kerstin von Pückler, Sebastian Schaub, Ingmar Kiefer, Tobias Schwarz

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract / Description of output

A photographic and computed tomography (CT) scanning study was carried out on the molar teeth of 18 adult male Babyrousa babyrussa skulls and 8 skulls of Babyrousa celebensis including 7 adult males, 1 adult female and 1 subadult male. The occlusal morphology of the adult maxillary and mandibular molar teeth of B. babyrussa was very similar to that of B. celebensis. Most B. babyrussa maxillary molar teeth had 6 roots, with small numbers of teeth having 4, 5 or 7 roots. A similar pattern was suggested in B. celebensis. Mandibular molar teeth had between 4 and 8 roots. Tooth roots of first and second maxillary and mandibular molar teeth were largely tapering, rod-like structures.
The roots of the 111/211 teeth had a more complex arrangement; some inserted almost vertically into the maxilla; others orientated in a more distal direction. The mesial and distal roots were splayed in appearance. The 311/411 tooth roots retained elements of the open ‘C’ shape and were generally orientated distally. The pulp chambers were arched to fit under the main cusps in all molar teeth. Pulp canals were variable in number.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)31-42
Number of pages12
JournalJournal of Veterinary Dentistry
Volume41
Issue number1
Early online date30 Dec 2023
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 5 May 2024

Keywords / Materials (for Non-textual outputs)

  • anatomy
  • wild pig
  • babirusa
  • Babyrousa spp.
  • tooth root
  • root canal

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