On the growth and regeneration of the exoskeleton in early jawless vertebrates (Osteostraci, Agnatha)

Abstract

Based on the study of sculpture of the cephalic shield and histological structure of the exoskeleton in Reticulaspis menneri Afanassieva et Karatajute -Talimaa (Osteostraci, Agnatha) from the Lower Devonian of the Severnaya Zemlya Archipelago, it has been established that, in the ontogeny of the form under study, dentin generation of the exoskeleton may have developed repeatedly, depending on the requirements of the organism. It is established for the first time that, on the shield surface of osteostracans, dentin structures of various types (tubercles, ridges, networks) could be formed both primarily and in subsequent generations with the growth of the exoskeleton. Injury of the integument and, hence, changes in mechanical tension in covering tissues caused activation of the formation of subsequent generations (of dentin) in the areas involved in reparative regeneration of the shield.