(vi) Structure of teeth : Teeth divided into three parts

(a) Root : Inner most attached to the bone with help of cement (hyaluronic
acid).
(b) Neck : Middle, small, covered with gum. Gum provides strength to the
teeth.
(c) Apex or crown : External exposed part of teeth. Longest part, white in
colour.
Teeth are made up of a hollow cavity, called as pulp cavity or dentine pulp
cavity. It contains blood vessels lymphatic vessels nerve fibres, connective tissue
etc. and provides nutrition to odontoblast cells or osteoblast cells. The
odontoblast cells are mesodermal in embryonic origin forming immediate
covering of the pulp cavity. The cells secrete dentine/ivory. Bulk of tooth in a
mammal is formed of dentine. Dentine is a layer of inorganic substances (6269%), which surrounds the odonto-blast cells. It is mesodermal in origin.
Enamel , secreted by Ameloblast/Enameloblast cells, forms the outermost
covering. It is ectodermal and made up of 92% of inorganic substances, hence
considered as hardest part of the body. The inorganic substances present are
[Ca3(PO4)2,Ca(OH)2.H2O] Calcium phosphate (85%), Calcium hydroxide and
Calcium Carbonate.
Cement/Cementum attaches the tooth root to the bone. A thin peritoneal
membrane is present between the two called as peridontal membrane or
Sharpeys fiber running from cement to bone. Gum is chiefly made up of
connective tissue. In the incisors of rodents, lagomorphs and elephants, pulp
cavity remains open basally so that these teeth continue to grow throughout life
and are termed open-rooted. In the majority of mammals, including man, the
basal aperture of pulp cavity becomes closed at a certain age so that
nourishment stops and further growth ceases. Such teeth are termed closerooted.