Nanoscale chemical tomography reveals organic and inorganic clusters in fossilised dinosaur tooth
- 1University of Rouen Normandy
Abstract
Mineralized dental tissues are formed through biomineralization processes involving the growth and self-organisation of hydroxylapatite (HAP) nanoscale grains. There remain open questions regarding the way elements such as Mg or Na are incorporated in the organic matter between HAP grains or within the grain structure where they influence the nucleation and growth of HAP. Here, mapping the enamel structure and composition of a well-preserved ca. 150-million-year-old Giraffatitan brancai sauropod dinosaur tooth from millimeters down to the near-atomic scale, we reveal the nanoscale accumulation of Mg at HAP grain boundaries, alongside F arising from diagenesis. Within the HAP grains and at HAP grain boundaries organic matter forms clusters that we propose contribute to the fast growth rate of the tooth. Moreover, unexpected Cu3As particles are found across the entire enamel structure. These elements are not in the dentine, that exhibits empty tubules, which suggests that they were integrated during the tooth growth itself. Our multiscale analysis provides new information encouraging to reconsider aspects of the biomineralization and fossilization processes.
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BibTeX
@misc{hsu2026nanoscale,
title = {{Nanoscale chemical tomography reveals organic and inorganic clusters in fossilised dinosaur tooth}},
author = {Y. Hsu and T. Schwarz and A. Triccas and A. Kostka and X. Chen and K. Jang and C. Scheu and B. Razker and T. Tuetken and B. Gault and M. Dumont},
howpublished = {bioRxiv},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.64898/2026.09.06.749662},
url = {https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.09.06.749662v1},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - Nanoscale chemical tomography reveals organic and inorganic clusters in fossilised dinosaur tooth
AU - Y. Hsu
AU - T. Schwarz
AU - A. Triccas
AU - A. Kostka
AU - X. Chen
AU - K. Jang
AU - C. Scheu
AU - B. Razker
AU - T. Tuetken
AU - B. Gault
AU - M. Dumont
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/06
PB - bioRxiv
DO - 10.64898/2026.09.06.749662
UR - https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.09.06.749662v1
AB - Mineralized dental tissues are formed through biomineralization processes involving the growth and self-organisation of hydroxylapatite (HAP) nanoscale grains. There remain open questions regarding the way elements such as Mg or Na are incorporated in the organic matter between HAP grains or within the grain structure where they influence the nucleation and growth of HAP. Here, mapping the enamel structure and composition of a well-preserved ca. 150-million-year-old Giraffatitan brancai sauropod dinosaur tooth from millimeters down to the near-atomic scale, we reveal the nanoscale accumulation of Mg at HAP grain boundaries, alongside F arising from diagenesis. Within the HAP grains and at HAP grain boundaries organic matter forms clusters that we propose contribute to the fast growth rate of the tooth. Moreover, unexpected Cu3As particles are found across the entire enamel structure. These elements are not in the dentine, that exhibits empty tubules, which suggests that they were integrated during the tooth growth itself. Our multiscale analysis provides new information encouraging to reconsider aspects of the biomineralization and fossilization processes.
ER -