Mandible
Bone: Mandible | ||
---|---|---|
The mandible | ||
The human skull, with the mandible shown in purple at the bottom. | ||
Latin | mandibula | |
Precursor | 1st branchial arch[1] |
The mandible is a bone found in all jawed vertebrates. The name comes from Latin mandibula.
In bony fish the lower jaw is made of a number of bones, but these were gradually reduced in evolution.
In humans and other mammals the mandible is simply the jawbone or dentary, which is the largest and strongest bone of the face.
In mammals bones formerly in the lower jaw have become the ear ossicles.
Mandible Media
Body and ramus of the mandible. The mandibular foramen is labeled on the right. The lingula is just above the mandibular foramen.
A panoramic radiograph reveals the mandible, including the heads and necks of the mandibular condyles, the coronoid processes of the mandible, as well as the nasal antrum and the maxillary sinuses.
The medial and lateral pterygoid muscles; the zygomatic arch and a portion of the ramus of the mandible have been removed
References
- ↑ hednk-023—Embryo Images at University of North Carolina