#fossil tooth in matrix

[uk-fossils]

Mosasaur Tooth Fossil in Matrix – Cretaceous Kem Kem Basin Morocco, Genuine Dinosaur-Age Specimen

A superb Mosasaur Tooth Fossil embedded in its original matrix, discovered in the Kem Kem Beds of the Cretaceous Period, near Khouribga, in the Kem Kem Basin, Morocco. This authentic specimen represents a tooth from one of the top marine predators of the Late Mesozoic era.

Mosasaurs were large marine reptiles closely related to modern monitor lizards and snakes. They dominated the seas during the Late Cretaceous, preying on fish, ammonites, and other marine life with their powerful jaws and robust conical teeth.

Fossil Type: Marine Reptile Tooth (Mosasaur)

Genus: Indeterminate Mosasaur (family Mosasauridae)

Geological Age: Lower Cretaceous – Aptian Stage (~125–113 million years ago)

Formation: Kem Kem Beds, Kem Kem Basin, Morocco

Depositional Environment: The Kem Kem Beds were formed in a river-dominated deltaic environment with periodic marine incursions. This rich ecosystem supported a diverse assemblage of both terrestrial and aquatic fauna, including dinosaurs, pterosaurs, fish, and marine reptiles like mosasaurs.

Morphological Features:

Thick, conical tooth with slight curvature

Well-preserved enamel and root (where present)

Naturally set in original sedimentary matrix for display

Notable:

Excellent example of a Cretaceous apex predator’s fossil tooth

Embedded in matrix for an authentic geological presentation

Perfect for collectors, educators, and fossil enthusiasts

The exact specimen in the photo is the one for sale

Authenticity: All of our fossils are 100% genuine natural specimens and are provided with a Certificate of Authenticity. The scale cube shown equals 1cm – please refer to the image for full sizing.

This Mosasaur tooth fossil from the Kem Kem Basin offers a direct connection to one of the most formidable marine reptiles of the dinosaur age—a fascinating and educational piece of ancient natural history.

[mesozoicmarket]

A dinosaur tooth of a cf. Afrovenator abakensis from the Irhazer Group in Marandet, Agadez, Niger. While megalosaurs are abundant in this region, it's unclear if they primarily belong to Afrovenator. The provenance and preservation is consistent with the Tiourarén Formation, but it is impossible to say for sure given the nature of these fossils. Despite having a fragile appearance, these fractured teeth are held together by very tough matrix.

[paragonrobits]

story concept; following the events of Transformers One, or a similar continuity, the gulf between the Autobots (longing for brotherhood and friendship with alien life) and the xenophobic Decepticons consumed by hatred and the need for control is defined as the Autobots philosophically test the extremes of what it means to transform; to become not just vehicles, or weapons, or weaponize your own body, but to take on forms like the beasts of other worlds

to be an Autobot is to embrace all possibilities and shapes; to be as one with all other forms of life, beyond wheel and cog and fan, but to take on even more alien forms and make it your own; to prove that the Spark resonates with other creatures, not just weapons and utility vehicles

some hard-liners are revolted by this, thinking of it as compliance with the Quintessons; to take on the forms of aliens and their animal counterparts is to become animals. to be nothing more than disgusting, rabid beasts

Optimus considers one of the fallen Primes, who died rather than give the Matrix to a usurper who would have only used its power for dominance. The name of this ancient Prime is hard to translate; their shape is monstrous, a dragon-thing with four limbs and a humanoid upper body, something far more frightening than Airachnid.

And yet, there is peace in their strange face, as though they saw into the spirit of all possible things, and found only kinship there. Their name, the translations offer, might have been Onyx Prime.

well, then, says Optimus, then if its a choice between standing with people consumed by hatred, or to do the impossible, then let them become beasts.

And, as the Autobots work to find a new way to connect the form-finding methods of a body to scan the shapes of other beings, an eccentric engineer named Wheeljack shows up, with a bunch of scrappy kids from Simfur, who suffered hard under the reign of Sentinel, but have had their hearts inspired by the words of Optimus Prime, and the hopes of Primus himself.

They can't transform; no matter what, they can't find a shape that feels right.

"I got an idea," Wheeljack says, holding a fossilized tooth from a distant world that he thinks would make for a great try. The biggest and toughest of the Simfur scrappers takes the tooth.

(They don't call him Grimlock. Not yet.)

He looks at it, as the new system makes its first mode scan, and something in him awakens:

it's like seeing a mirror, and seeing yourself.

As before, in the first generation; as now:

the Dinobots are the first true beastformers.

[carnegiemuseumnaturalhistory]

Fossil Matrix Under the Microscope

by Pat McShea

Museum visitors who approach the broad window of PaleoLab encounter an array of large fossilized bones. If not for the pair of microscope workstations positioned against the lab’s right wall, it would be easy to misinterpret the enormous jaws, ribs, vertebrae, and limb bones as evidence of a size bias in the science of vertebrate paleontology.

A scoop of fossil-bearing matrix on a sorting tray.

Small fossils have certainly made mighty contributions to our understanding of life during ancient time periods. Such fossils, which include loose teeth, small bones, and bone fragments, are the primary focus of some paleontological research. In other projects, where considerably larger fossilized creatures are the focus of study, the fossils of smaller creatures add information about species diversity, food webs, and even the climate conditions of ancient ecosystems. The sorting of fossil-bearing matrix that occurs under PaleoLab’s microscopes ensures that important discoveries will continue to occur.

The term matrix refers to the natural rock surrounding a fossil. In the case of fossil bones encased in rock, the matrix consists of the loose sediments that originally buried the bones, sediments that were later transformed into rock over long stretches of time by the pressure of other sediment layers deposited above them. When fossil-bearing rock layers erode, however, and loosened fossils are transported by water, wind, or other forces, the unconsolidated mix of surrounding materials in which the fossils eventually settle is also termed matrix.

In the field, paleontologists sometimes collect and screen loose matrix on site, using water to both separate floatable bits of plant debris and wash away soil, then sun-drying the resulting sludge for later screening. In the case of the matrix currently being sorted in PaleoLab, material eroded from a more than 50 million-year-old rock unit near Meridian, Mississippi was collected in bulk by CMNH paleontologists and brought back to Pittsburgh for washing and drying at the museum.

Unsorted fossil-bearing matrix.

During a recent visit to PaleoLab, Scientific Preparator Dan Pickering pulled two containers from a shelf as “before” and “after” sorting examples. In the “before” container, a quart-sized plastic jug that once held ground coffee, a black, dime-sized shark tooth resting atop similar-sized irregular gray rock fragments hinted at the possible rewards for future sorting efforts. The considerably smaller and lighter “after” container bore not just an array of small marine fossils, including shark teeth and skate tooth plate fragments, but also the name and working notes of the sorter, CMNH volunteer Jason Davis.

Fossils picked from matrix, with volunteer Jason Davis’ notes revealing that the material is from the lowermost Eocene (~55 million-year-old) Tuscahoma Formation of Mississippi.

Dan termed the recent finds typical for the current operation, but he also noted a now decades-old exciting discovery in matrix screened from a different, but adjacent Mississippi rock unit. In a scientific paper published in 1991, then-CMNH paleontologists K. Christopher Beard and Alan R. Tabrum described a tooth and jaw fragment from an early primate. The fossil was the first record of an early Eocene mammal in eastern North America, and because of its association with well-studied marine fossils, the find helped to better calibrate existing separate biochronologies of terrestrial and marine fossils.

Patrick McShea works in the Education and Visitor Experience department of Carnegie Museum of Natural History. Museum employees are encouraged to blog about their unique experiences and knowledge gained from working at the museum.

[wtf-triassic]

Odontochelys semitestacea

By @alphynix​

Etymology: Toothed Turtle

First Described By: Lie et al., 2008 

Classification: Biota, Archaea, Proteoarchaeota, Asgardarchaeota, Eukaryota, Neokaryota, Scotokaryota, Opimoda, Podiata, Amorphea, Obazoa, Opisthokonta, Holozoa, Filozoa, Choanozoa, Animalia, Eumetazoa, Parahoxozoa, Bilateria, Nephrozoa, Deuterostomia, Chordata, Olfactores, Vertebrata, Craniata, Gnathostomata, Eugnathostomata, Osteichthyes, Sarcopterygii, Rhipidistia, Tetrapodomorpha, Eotetrapodiformes, Elpistostegalia, Stegocephalia, Tetrapoda, Reptiliomorpha, Amniota, Sauropsida, Eureptilia, Romeriida, Diapsida, Neodiapsida, Sauria, Archosauromorpha?, Archelosauria, Pantestudines, Odontochelyidae  

Time and Place: Around 232 million years ago, in the Carnian age of the Late Triassic

Odontochelys is known from the Lower Member of the Xiaowa Formation of China, commonly known as the Guanling Fauna

Physical Description: Odontochelys is one of the earliest known turtles - preceded by one, possibly two, precursors other than stem members of the family group - and it showcases how this extremely unique group managed to evolve in the chaos that was the Triassic Explosion. It was simultaneously similar to and very different from living turtles, a true transitional organism. Like other reptiles, it had teeth embedded in its jaws, rather than the toothless beak found in turtle mouths. Like turtles, it had the lower plastron extending from its ribs, but unlike living turtles it had no upper shell - instead, it just had widened ribs and no bony shell around its body. The ribs and the vertebrae were put together differently from modern turtles as well, and its skull was more stretched out compared to its living relatives. It didn’t have fused tail bones, and its scapulae were very different from living turtles. It had short limbs and long, thick fingers, as well as a decently sized shell. It was about forty centimeters long from snout to tail tip. 

Diet: The diet of Odontochelys is fairly uncertain, despite us having its teeth; though they are small and peg like, we can’t really extrapolate a function since we don’t actually know its precise ecology! They may have been used for stripping plants, but it’s also possible they were used to chipp up algae and other aquatic water plants, or even invertebrates! So, more research there is clearly needed. 

Behavior: The life history of Odontochelys is actually a big mystery. It was found in a marine environment, leading initial studies to indicate it was marine. However, it had the hands of a fresh water organism, including fresh water turtles today. Furthermore, studies of other early turtles indicate that turtles first arose on the land, rather than in the water, and later groups would adapt to water life; the limbs of Odontochelys share similarities with tortoises and support a terrestrial lifestyle. So, the ecology of Odontochelys has been a constant battle. That said, there is some evidence that it was actually marine - and may represent an early experiment in ocean life by turtles. One fossil of Odontochelys indicates that it had completely messed up shoulder bones, likely due to a problem in life rather than destruction of the fossil. This pattern resembles decompression sickness, aka the bends, aka the condition caused by a diving animal coming up much too fast from a lower depth. Modern turtles have complex behavioral adaptations to avoid the bends, so Odontochelys may be an early experiment in marine life in a group mostly adapted for terrestrial life. In this transition to ocean life, it not only lacked better physical adaptations for the ocean, but also better behavioral ones, and was stricken with the bends on its trip back to the surface. So, as we try to determine its ecology and behavior, these clued paint a rich tapestry of the world’s most transitional turtle. A pioneer! 

Ecosystem: Odontochelys was found in - and thus, the null hypothesis is that it lived in - an ocean environment near the coast of the Tethys sea. This was a deep, open ocean - pelagic, hence the bends and problems Odontochelys faced trying to deal with the ocean. It was a very fertile ecosystem as well, with a variety of Triassic marine animals showcasing the rapid evolution of these groups. Among the invertebrates, there were many different types of Ammonites, plenty of bivalves, brachiopods, and crinoids & sea cucumbers as well. Still, the fascinating part of the ecosystem was the sheer number of marine reptiles. There were Thalattosaurs such as Anshusaurus and Xinpusaurus; Placodonts like Psephochelys and Sinocyamodus; and Ichthyosaurs like Qianicthyosaurus, Guizhouichthyosaurus, Guanlingsaurus, and Callawayia. One of many beautiful deposits of marine animals from this Period - and the many Ichthyosaurs would have been major predators of the relative n00b Odontochelys. 

Other: Odontochelys also just looks really weird because it basically looks like your usual turtle except it doesn’t have a freaking shell so here we are with this oddity. It’s transitional in shape, transitional in ecology, transitional in behavior, and just. What the heck. What the heck, Odontochelys. If you need more proof for evolution despite knowing about the dinosaur - bird transition, have I got a friend for you. 

~ By Meig Dickson 

Sources Under the Cut

Anquetin, J. 2012. Reassessment of the phylogenetic interrelationships of basal turtles (Testudinata). Journal of Systematic Palaeontology 10(1):3-45. 

Bradley Shaffer, H., E. McCartney-Melstad, T. J. Near, G. G. Mount, P. Q. Spinks. 2017. Phylogenomic analyses of 539 highly informative loci dates a fully resolved time tree for the major clades of living turtles (Testudines). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 115: 7 - 15. 

Feldmann, R. M., C. E. Schweitzer, S. Hu, J. Huang, Q. Zhang, C. Zhou, W. Wen, T. Xie, E. P. Maguire. 2017. A new Middle Triassic (Anisian) cyclidan crustacean from the Luoping Biota, Yunnan Province, China: morphologic and phylogenetic insights. Journal of Crustacean Biology 37 (4): 406 - 412. 

Gilbert, S. F. 2007. How the turtle gets its shell. Biology of Turtles: The Structures to Strategies of Life. 

Heiss, E. 2010. Functionality and plasticity of turtle-feeding with special emphasis on oropharyngeal structures. Universitat Wien Doctoral Dissertation. 

Hess, H., W. Etter, and H. Hagdorn. 2016. Roveacrinida (Crinoidea) from Late Triassic (early Carnian) black shales of Southwest China. Swiss Journal of Paleontology 135(2):249-274. 

Joyce, W. G. 2015. The origin of turtles: A paleontological perspective. Journal of Experimental Zoology Part B: Molecular and Developmental Evolution 324 (3): 181 - 193. 

Lee, M. S. Y. 2013. Turtle origins: Insights from phylogenetic retrofitting and molecular scaffolds. Journal of Evolutionary Biology 26 (12): 2729 - 2738. 

Lemell, P., N. Natchev, C. J. Beisser, E. Heiss. 2019. Feeding in Turtles: Understanding Terrestrial and Aquatic Feeding in a Diverse but Monophyletic Group. Feeding in Vertebrates: 611 - 642. 

Li, C., and O. Rieppel. 2002. A new cyamodontid placodont from Triassic of Guizhou, China. Chinese Science Bulletin 47(5):403-407. 

Li, C., X. C. Wu, O. Rieppel, L. T. Wang, and L. J. Zhao. 2008. An ancestral turtle from the Late Triassic of southwestern China. Nature 456:497-501. 

Lu, H., D.-Y. Jiang, R. Motani, P.-G. Ni, Z.-Y. Sun, A. Tintori, S.-Z. Xiao, M. Zhou, C. Ji, W.-L. Fu. 2018. Middle Triassic Xingyi Fauna: Showing turnover of marine reptiles from coastal to oceanic environments. Palaeoworld 27 (1): 107 - 116. 

Luo, M., Y.-M. Gong, G. R. Shi, Z.-Q. Chen, J. Huang, S. Hu, X. Feng, Q. Zhang, C. Zhou, W. Wen. 2018. Palaeoecological Analysis of Trace Fossil Sinusichnus sinuosus from the Middle Triassic Guanling Formationin Southwestern China. Journal of Earth Science 29: 854 - 863. 

Meredith, R. W., J. Gatesy, M. S. Springer. Molecular decay of enamel matrix protein genes in turtles and other edentulous amniotes. BMC Evolutionary Biology 13: 20. 

Neenan, J. M., N. Klein, T. M. Scheyer. 2013. European origin of placodont marine reptiles and the evolution of crushing dentition in Placodontia. Nature Communications 4: 1621. 

Nicholls, E. L., C. Wei, and M. Manabe. 2002. New material of Qianichthyosaurus Li, 1999 (Reptilia, Ichthyosauria) from the Late Triassic of southern China, and implications for the distribution of Triassic icthyosaurs. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 22(4):759-765. 

Reisz, R. R., J. J. Head. 2008. Palaeontology: Turtle origins out to sea. Nature 456 (7221): 450 - 451. 

Rothschild, B. M., V. Naples. 2015. Decompression syndrome and diving behavior in Odontochelys, the first turtle. Acta Palaeontologica Polonica 60 (1): 163 - 167. 

Schoch, R. R., H.-D. Sues. 2015. A Middle Triassic stem-turtle and the evolution of the turtle body plan. Nature 523 (7562): 584 - 587. 

Shang, Q.-H., and C. Li. 2009. On the occurrence of the ichthyosaur Shastasaurus in the Guanling biota (Late Triassic), Guizhou, China. Vertebrata PalAsiatica 47(3):178-193. 

Vermeij, G. J., R. Motani. 2017. Land to sea transitions in vertebrates: the dynamics of colonization. Paleobiology 44 (2): 237 - 250. 

Wang, X., G. H. Bachmann, H. Hagdorn, P. M. Sanders, G. Cuny, X. Chen, C. Wang, L. Chen, L. Cheng, F. Meng, and G. Xu. 2008. The Late Triassic black shales of the Guanling area, Guizhou province, south-west China: a unique marine reptile and pelagic crinoid fossil lagerstätte. Palaeontology 51(1):27-61. 

Wang, X., X. Chen, C. Wang, L. Cheng. 2009. The Triassic Guanling Fossil Group - A Key GeoPark from a barren mountain, Guizhou Province, China. Notebooks on Geology 3: Chapter 2: 11 - 28. 

[fossils-planet]

A nice Enchodus tooth with jaw in matrix for sale #Dinosaurs #jurassicworld #reptilesofinstagram #fossilseller #fossils #followforfollowback #follow #archeology   #instagram #amazing #likeforfollow  #youtube #viral #explorepage #trending #instagram #tiktok #like #follow #instagood #likeforlikes #memes #music #followforfollowback #viralvideos #photography #likes ##fossilshunter #paleontology https://www.instagram.com/p/Ceefqukt9nC/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[stereotapestry]

My jeweler friend, Megin Spivey, sent Alex a surprise mini-museum birthday package. The large rock is 60m+ year old dino dung (coprolite). Clockwise, there is also a: piece of fossilized turtle shell, labradorite Ganesh, skull fragment, Mako shark tooth, ancient Mayan deity carving, geode in matrix and a tiny metal Shiva. Spivey creates one-of-a-kind men’s cufflinks and accessories inspired by her world travels. Thanks for these amazingly thoughtful treasures @spiveyjewelry https://www.instagram.com/p/CGXuwZagBxH/?igshid=9pwqhhudj0z1

[snakesandkittens]

I love the dollar bin at the rock and gem store I go to! Today’s scores: pairs of little gems to make into earrings for friends and family, a piece of fossilized mandible with a tooth, and two tiiiiiiny opals, one still in its matrix! 💎

[uk-fossils]

Mosasaur Tooth Fossil in Matrix – Cretaceous Kem Kem Basin Morocco, Genuine Dinosaur-Age Specimen

A superb Mosasaur Tooth Fossil embedded in its original matrix, discovered in the Kem Kem Beds of the Cretaceous Period, near Khouribga, in the Kem Kem Basin, Morocco. This authentic specimen represents a tooth from one of the top marine predators of the Late Mesozoic era.

Mosasaurs were large marine reptiles closely related to modern monitor lizards and snakes. They dominated the seas during the Late Cretaceous, preying on fish, ammonites, and other marine life with their powerful jaws and robust conical teeth.

Fossil Type: Marine Reptile Tooth (Mosasaur)

Genus: Indeterminate Mosasaur (family Mosasauridae)

Geological Age: Lower Cretaceous – Aptian Stage (~125–113 million years ago)

Formation: Kem Kem Beds, Kem Kem Basin, Morocco

Depositional Environment: The Kem Kem Beds were formed in a river-dominated deltaic environment with periodic marine incursions. This rich ecosystem supported a diverse assemblage of both terrestrial and aquatic fauna, including dinosaurs, pterosaurs, fish, and marine reptiles like mosasaurs.

Morphological Features:

Thick, conical tooth with slight curvature

Well-preserved enamel and root (where present)

Naturally set in original sedimentary matrix for display

Notable:

Excellent example of a Cretaceous apex predator’s fossil tooth

Embedded in matrix for an authentic geological presentation

Perfect for collectors, educators, and fossil enthusiasts

The exact specimen in the photo is the one for sale

Authenticity: All of our fossils are 100% genuine natural specimens and are provided with a Certificate of Authenticity. The scale cube shown equals 1cm – please refer to the image for full sizing.

This Mosasaur tooth fossil from the Kem Kem Basin offers a direct connection to one of the most formidable marine reptiles of the dinosaur age—a fascinating and educational piece of ancient natural history.

[robertsmorgan]

Biofilms in the Body

Long before you became a part of your community and, hopefully, a contributing member of society, there were the original communities, which were made of a network of bacteria. The inhabitants of these worked together to ensure the survival of as many members as possible. Today, these communities are called biofilms and they’re found almost anywhere they can survive. Fossil records indicate they’re at least 3.25 million years old, and they’ve been with us ever since.[1]

What Are Biofilms?

Biofilms are slimy, microbial strongholds that grow in aqueous environments and typically adhere to surfaces. If you’ve ever taken a microbiology lab, you’ve probably seen sticky glue-like substances grow in Petri dishes after performing a smear. The small slimy colonies smeared on plates are biofilms. They’re inhabited by tiny individual microbial colonies of bacteria, yeast, or algae. Outside the lab, the types of surfaces biofilms stick to range from the interior of sink pipes to boat hulls, the exterior of rocks and leaves, and even areas of the body like your teeth and tissues. Some well-known examples you might be familiar with include pond scum, mildew, kombucha SCOBYs, and dental plaque.

Biofilms help ensure the survival of the various microscopic organism species that they’re composed of by decreasing their chances of being removed or eliminated by soaps, antiseptic detergents, and antibiotics. Usually, only the surface or edges of the biofilm are affected, protecting the deeper layers of microorganisms and slime from removal. This presents a health concern if the biofilm contains harmful microorganisms. In fact, some researchers believe that some persistent or recurring infections may result from stubborn biofilms in the body that evade immune defenses.[2]

Biofilms aren’t all bad, though. Beneficial biofilms in your gut provide a stable colony of probiotic bacterial and fungal species that prevent harmful colonies from gaining a foothold in your gut ecosystem. Biofilms develop in the appendix, mouth, vagina, colon, ear canals, lungs, and nasal passages. Despite being a seemingly dry tissue, your skin harbors a community of S. epidermidis in a biofilm structure found throughout the outer layers of your epidermis.[3]

How Do Biofilms Form?

The microorganisms most people are familiar with are planktonic, or free floating, organisms. The formation of a biofilm usually begins when a single planktonic microbe tenuously clings to a surface. In the body, this typically means a given microbe finds a molecular handhold called an adhesion site on a surface (epithelial) cell of one of your tissues or organs, but microbes can also cling to the mucous layer that covers certain tissues. From here, other microbes begin linking to the original.[4]

This small collection of microorganisms forms a settlement on the surface by secreting a substance called extracellular polymeric substance (EPS), which is made of enzymes, DNA, proteins, and sugar molecules called polysaccharides. It’s kind of like microbial terraforming. They make your body a more hospitable environment for more microbial cells and act as a sort of spider’s web, preventing microbial cells from dislodging from the matrix. Notably, these colonies are more slime than cells. Only about 15% of a given biofilm is made up of cells. The remaining 85% is comprised of the slimy EPS matrix.[3]

This network of microbes and slime develops channels to transport nutrients and water to the microcolonies embedded within it, much like how the blood vessels in your body supply your cells with nutrients. These cells almost function as an organ by communicating with each other using the slimy matrix to deliver chemical messenger molecules, a mechanism called quorum sensing, This chemical communication leads to gene regulation, in which genes are activated and inactivated as needed to preserve the biofilm or help it grow.[3, 5]

Just like the mildew in your shower, biofilms grow. They form a stronger hold on their surface, making them more difficult to wipe out. This is an excellent characteristic for health-promoting biofilms, but it’s alarming when harmful microbes plant their flag in your body to start settling down.

Healthy Biofilms in the Gut

Your gut is uniquely suited to biofilm formation since the lining of the intestine is covered with a mucous gel-layer that protects your gut microbes. Gut microbes can infiltrate this layer to set up stable colonies. Notably, microbes are rarely able to fully breach the protective mucous layers throughout your body to reach the underlying epithelial cells. In the gut, your immune system appears to encourage biofilm formation by secreting immunoglobulin A (IgA), an immune protein that makes bacteria stick together, or agglutinate. This phenomenon encourages stable microbial composition and inhibits the growth of harmful organisms.[3, 6, 7]

Some researchers think that intestinal biofilms are another line of intestinal defense. They simultaneously assist the development of biofilms, but also prevent microorganisms and undesirable substances and molecules from crossing into the body from the colon. You can think of them as a sort of sealant that protects a potentially porous tissue from being infiltrated, like a wood varnish that seals out water to prevent mildew.[8]

Biofilms Harmful to Your Health

Unfortunately, biofilms and the mucous layers they assimilate with also protect harmful microbes from being eliminated. In fact, a harmful gut ecosystem might be more challenging to balance because the mucous layer that coats the intestines tends to thicken to defend your surface cells from inflammation-provoking substances, foods, drugs, and microbes. This gives the unhealthy microbes a larger mucous layer in which to proliferate. The microbes huddle down, guarded by their biofilm matrix, to weather whatever immune defenses your body tries.[2]

The Effects of Harmful Biofilms

Harmful biofilms protect harmful organisms from physical removal, immune activity, antimicrobials, and antibiotics. Not only do they allow unchecked harmful organism overgrowth, but they also impede the development of health-promoting biofilms. In the presence of harmful biofilms, there is potential for increased virulence due to gene transfer between cells in the biofilm.

Biofilms have proven frustratingly resistant to efforts to thwart or address organism overgrowth. They are especially worrying for people with cystic fibrosis and chronic sinus infections due to the great quantities of mucus generated that can quickly become a safe harbor for harmful microbes.[2]

An Example of Harmful Biofilm: Dental Plaque

One easily observed biofilm is found right in your mouth. Dental plaque is a biofilm that tends to harbor acid-producing microbial species. If you don’t remove it regularly by brushing, flossing consistently, and seeing the dentist, the acid these microbes produce can damage your teeth. Poor dental hygiene leads to bad breath, tooth decay, dental cavities, and gum disease. It may also contribute to the incidence and severity of respiratory conditions in people with weak immune systems when biofilm is transferred from the mouth to the lungs.[9, 10]

Although you can’t sterilize your teeth, you can physically remove oral biofilms, yeast, and bacteria by brushing and flossing after every meal. Eliminate sticky candies, refined sugar, and refined carbs from your diet to discourage the harmful bacteria like Streptococcus mutans from dominating your mouth microbiota. These kinds of food cling to your teeth and feed harmful oral bacteria. Stay hydrated to prevent dry mouth, a condition that also contributes to stable harmful colonies.[9]

Going even further, you can try to nourish helpful oral bacteria growth like Streptococcus salivarius by eating fermented foods, probiotics, and cutting down on the alcohol-based mouthwashes which indiscriminately wipe out both healthy and harmful oral microbes.

How to Encourage Healthy Biofilms

Biofilms can occur almost anywhere that microorganisms live on your body. Therefore, it’s essential to promote healthy biofilms in the gut and reduce your chances of developing harmful biofilms in other areas of the body with good (but not excessive) hygiene, a strong immune system, and a healthy diet. Managing biofilms in your body often requires actions specific to the tissue or area, like brushing your teeth. Consult your healthcare practitioner if you suspect harmful biofilms may be affecting your health.

Research is still emerging for solutions to biofilms in difficult to reach tissues, so there aren’t any hard and fast recommendations to address them. That said, aromatic phytochemicals like thymol, eugenol, carvacrol, and cymene have distinct biofilm-inhibiting properties, and they’re easy to incorporate into your diet.

Consume herbs and spices like thyme, oregano, and cloves to get these beneficial phytochemicals, along with many conutrients like terpenes, into your diet. You can consume the oils of these spices by adding a tiny drop to a pot of fragrant tea or a large jar of homemade salad dressing. Look to your food first to preserve your health. Relying on a diverse health-promoting diet provides you with a complementary array of active phytonutrients that offer a multi-pronged approach to keep you in excellent health.[11, 12, 13, 14]

The post Biofilms in the Body appeared first on Dr. Group's Healthy Living Articles.

from Robert Morgan Blog https://www.globalhealingcenter.com/natural-health/biofilms/

[thenarside]

Check out this bull shark tooth fossilized in its' matrix. I may have to keep this one. (at Venice Beach, Florida)

[ustylefashion-blog]

OTODUS OBLIQUUS FOSSIL SHARK TOOTH ON NATURAL MATRIX WITH STAND -MOROCCO #OT30

$1000.0

BUY IT NOW

[uk-fossils]

Mosasaur Tooth Fossil in Matrix – Cretaceous Kem Kem Basin Morocco, Genuine Dinosaur-Age Specimen

A superb Mosasaur Tooth Fossil embedded in its original matrix, discovered in the Kem Kem Beds of the Cretaceous Period, near Khouribga, in the Kem Kem Basin, Morocco. This authentic specimen represents a tooth from one of the top marine predators of the Late Mesozoic era.

Mosasaurs were large marine reptiles closely related to modern monitor lizards and snakes. They dominated the seas during the Late Cretaceous, preying on fish, ammonites, and other marine life with their powerful jaws and robust conical teeth.

Fossil Type: Marine Reptile Tooth (Mosasaur)

Genus: Indeterminate Mosasaur (family Mosasauridae)

Geological Age: Lower Cretaceous – Aptian Stage (~125–113 million years ago)

Formation: Kem Kem Beds, Kem Kem Basin, Morocco

Depositional Environment: The Kem Kem Beds were formed in a river-dominated deltaic environment with periodic marine incursions. This rich ecosystem supported a diverse assemblage of both terrestrial and aquatic fauna, including dinosaurs, pterosaurs, fish, and marine reptiles like mosasaurs.

Morphological Features:

Thick, conical tooth with slight curvature

Well-preserved enamel and root (where present)

Naturally set in original sedimentary matrix for display

Notable:

Excellent example of a Cretaceous apex predator’s fossil tooth

Embedded in matrix for an authentic geological presentation

Perfect for collectors, educators, and fossil enthusiasts

The exact specimen in the photo is the one for sale

Authenticity: All of our fossils are 100% genuine natural specimens and are provided with a Certificate of Authenticity. The scale cube shown equals 1cm – please refer to the image for full sizing.

This Mosasaur tooth fossil from the Kem Kem Basin offers a direct connection to one of the most formidable marine reptiles of the dinosaur age—a fascinating and educational piece of ancient natural history.

[uk-fossils]

Mosasaur Tooth Fossil in Matrix – Cretaceous Kem Kem Basin Morocco, Genuine Dinosaur-Age Specimen

A superb Mosasaur Tooth Fossil embedded in its original matrix, discovered in the Kem Kem Beds of the Cretaceous Period, near Khouribga, in the Kem Kem Basin, Morocco. This authentic specimen represents a tooth from one of the top marine predators of the Late Mesozoic era.

Mosasaurs were large marine reptiles closely related to modern monitor lizards and snakes. They dominated the seas during the Late Cretaceous, preying on fish, ammonites, and other marine life with their powerful jaws and robust conical teeth.

Fossil Type: Marine Reptile Tooth (Mosasaur)

Genus: Indeterminate Mosasaur (family Mosasauridae)

Geological Age: Lower Cretaceous – Aptian Stage (~125–113 million years ago)

Formation: Kem Kem Beds, Kem Kem Basin, Morocco

Depositional Environment: The Kem Kem Beds were formed in a river-dominated deltaic environment with periodic marine incursions. This rich ecosystem supported a diverse assemblage of both terrestrial and aquatic fauna, including dinosaurs, pterosaurs, fish, and marine reptiles like mosasaurs.

Morphological Features:

Thick, conical tooth with slight curvature

Well-preserved enamel and root (where present)

Naturally set in original sedimentary matrix for display

Notable:

Excellent example of a Cretaceous apex predator’s fossil tooth

Embedded in matrix for an authentic geological presentation

Perfect for collectors, educators, and fossil enthusiasts

The exact specimen in the photo is the one for sale

Authenticity: All of our fossils are 100% genuine natural specimens and are provided with a Certificate of Authenticity. The scale cube shown equals 1cm – please refer to the image for full sizing.

This Mosasaur tooth fossil from the Kem Kem Basin offers a direct connection to one of the most formidable marine reptiles of the dinosaur age—a fascinating and educational piece of ancient natural history.

[uk-fossils]

Mosasaur Tooth Fossil in Matrix – Cretaceous Kem Kem Basin Morocco, Genuine Dinosaur-Age Specimen

A superb Mosasaur Tooth Fossil embedded in its original matrix, discovered in the Kem Kem Beds of the Cretaceous Period, near Khouribga, in the Kem Kem Basin, Morocco. This authentic specimen represents a tooth from one of the top marine predators of the Late Mesozoic era.

Mosasaurs were large marine reptiles closely related to modern monitor lizards and snakes. They dominated the seas during the Late Cretaceous, preying on fish, ammonites, and other marine life with their powerful jaws and robust conical teeth.

Fossil Type: Marine Reptile Tooth (Mosasaur)

Genus: Indeterminate Mosasaur (family Mosasauridae)

Geological Age: Lower Cretaceous – Aptian Stage (~125–113 million years ago)

Formation: Kem Kem Beds, Kem Kem Basin, Morocco

Depositional Environment: The Kem Kem Beds were formed in a river-dominated deltaic environment with periodic marine incursions. This rich ecosystem supported a diverse assemblage of both terrestrial and aquatic fauna, including dinosaurs, pterosaurs, fish, and marine reptiles like mosasaurs.

Morphological Features:

Thick, conical tooth with slight curvature

Well-preserved enamel and root (where present)

Naturally set in original sedimentary matrix for display

Notable:

Excellent example of a Cretaceous apex predator’s fossil tooth

Embedded in matrix for an authentic geological presentation

Perfect for collectors, educators, and fossil enthusiasts

The exact specimen in the photo is the one for sale

Authenticity: All of our fossils are 100% genuine natural specimens and are provided with a Certificate of Authenticity. The scale cube shown equals 1cm – please refer to the image for full sizing.

This Mosasaur tooth fossil from the Kem Kem Basin offers a direct connection to one of the most formidable marine reptiles of the dinosaur age—a fascinating and educational piece of ancient natural history.

[uk-fossils]

Mosasaur Tooth Fossil in Matrix – Cretaceous Kem Kem Basin Morocco, Genuine Dinosaur-Age Specimen

A superb Mosasaur Tooth Fossil embedded in its original matrix, discovered in the Kem Kem Beds of the Cretaceous Period, near Khouribga, in the Kem Kem Basin, Morocco. This authentic specimen represents a tooth from one of the top marine predators of the Late Mesozoic era.

Mosasaurs were large marine reptiles closely related to modern monitor lizards and snakes. They dominated the seas during the Late Cretaceous, preying on fish, ammonites, and other marine life with their powerful jaws and robust conical teeth.

Fossil Type: Marine Reptile Tooth (Mosasaur)

Genus: Indeterminate Mosasaur (family Mosasauridae)

Geological Age: Lower Cretaceous – Aptian Stage (~125–113 million years ago)

Formation: Kem Kem Beds, Kem Kem Basin, Morocco

Depositional Environment: The Kem Kem Beds were formed in a river-dominated deltaic environment with periodic marine incursions. This rich ecosystem supported a diverse assemblage of both terrestrial and aquatic fauna, including dinosaurs, pterosaurs, fish, and marine reptiles like mosasaurs.

Morphological Features:

Thick, conical tooth with slight curvature

Well-preserved enamel and root (where present)

Naturally set in original sedimentary matrix for display

Notable:

Excellent example of a Cretaceous apex predator’s fossil tooth

Embedded in matrix for an authentic geological presentation

Perfect for collectors, educators, and fossil enthusiasts

The exact specimen in the photo is the one for sale

Authenticity: All of our fossils are 100% genuine natural specimens and are provided with a Certificate of Authenticity. The scale cube shown equals 1cm – please refer to the image for full sizing.

This Mosasaur tooth fossil from the Kem Kem Basin offers a direct connection to one of the most formidable marine reptiles of the dinosaur age—a fascinating and educational piece of ancient natural history.