The article describes many features of the dragonfish. “These have not been investigated yet, but I suspect they have a similar structure,” Prof Meyers said. Other deep-sea predators, such as hatchetfish and anglerfish (which wave a glowing, rod-like growth from their heads to lure prey) also have see-through teeth. However, their organisation is significantly different from that of other fish and mammals. “However, we discovered that they are made of the same materials as our human teeth: hydroxyapatite and collagen. “Initially, we thought the teeth were made of another, unknown material. “Thus, the mouth is invisible and the prey is caught more easily,” Prof Meyers said. Instead, most light passes through the teeth. The light from the bioluminescence doesn’t reflect off the teeth because of their messy microscopic structure. Dragonfish light their way by carrying bacteria that make blue or red light. “That was very surprising to us,” said Professor Marc Meyers of the University of California, San Diego, who led the research published in the journal Matter.ĭeep down underwater it is almost completely dark. But the minerals* have a much finer microscopic structure that is not organised in any regular, neat pattern.

They found that dragonfish teeth are made of the same materials as human teeth - a protective layer of enamel on the surface and a tough, deeper layer of dentin*. A dragonfish collected by the researchers to study its teeth, which are made of the same material as human teeth but when looked at under a miscrosope, are structured differently, which means they don't reflect light.

Predator vs prey teeth for kids