Teeth lie at the interface between an animal and its environment and, with some exceptions, act as a major component of resource procurement through food acquisition and processing. Therefore, the shape of a tooth is closely tied to the type of food being eaten. This tight relationship is of use to biologists describing the natural history of species and given the high instance of tooth preservation in the fossil record, is especially useful for paleontologists. However, correlating gross tooth morphology to diet is only part of the story, and much more can be learned through the study of dental biomechanics. We can explore the mechanics of how teeth work, how different shapes evolved, and the underlying forces that constrain tooth shape. This review aims to provide an overview of the research on dental biomechanics, in both mammalian and non-mammalian teeth, and to synthesize two main approaches to dental biomechanics to develop an integrative framework for classifying and evaluating dental functional morphology. This framework relates food material properties to the dynamics of food processing, in particular how teeth transfer energy to food items, and how these mechanical considerations may have shaped the evolution of tooth morphology. We also review advances in technology and new techniques that have allowed more in-depth studies of tooth form and function.

中文翻译：

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超越描述：牙科生物力学的许多方面

牙齿位于动物与其环境之间的界面，除了某些例外，牙齿是通过食物获取和加工获取资源的主要组成部分。因此，牙齿的形状与所吃食物的类型密切相关。这种紧密的关系对于生物学家描述物种的自然历史很有用，并且考虑到化石记录中牙齿保存的高度实例，对古生物学家尤其有用。然而，将大体牙齿形态与饮食相关联只是故事的一部分，通过牙科生物力学的研究可以了解更多。我们可以探索牙齿的工作原理、不同形状的演变方式以及限制牙齿形状的潜在力量。本综述旨在概述牙科生物力学的研究，在哺乳动物和非哺乳动物牙齿中，并综合两种主要的牙科生物力学方法，以开发一个用于分类和评估牙齿功能形态的综合框架。该框架将食品材料特性与食品加工动力学联系起来，特别是牙齿如何将能量传递给食品，以及这些机械因素如何影响牙齿形态的演变。我们还回顾了技术和新技术的进步，这些进步允许对牙齿的形状和功能进行更深入的研究。特别是牙齿如何将能量传递给食物，以及这些机械因素如何影响牙齿形态的演变。我们还回顾了技术和新技术的进步，这些进步允许对牙齿的形状和功能进行更深入的研究。特别是牙齿如何将能量传递给食物，以及这些机械因素如何影响牙齿形态的演变。我们还回顾了技术和新技术的进步，这些进步允许对牙齿的形状和功能进行更深入的研究。