Which structure attaches a tooth to the surrounding bone and consists of fibrous connective tissue?

Which structure attaches a tooth to the surrounding bone and consists of fibrous connective tissue?

• A. Cementum
• B. Pulp
• C. Periodontal ligament
• D. Alveolar bone

Answer: (C)

The periodontal ligament is the fibrous connective tissue that anchors a tooth to the surrounding bone. It sits in the space between the cementum on the root surface and the alveolar bone of the socket, with collagen fibers (Sharpey's fibers) extending into both cementum and bone to hold the tooth in place. This tissue isn’t hard like bone or cementum; instead, it’s a flexible, vascular, and innervated network of fibers that cushions chewing forces, allows slight tooth movement, and helps transmit occlusal loads to the bone. Cementum is a mineralized layer on the root that provides attachment to the ligament, but it itself is not fibrous connective tissue. Pulp is the soft tissue inside the tooth, and alveolar bone is bone, not fibrous connective tissue.

The periodontal ligament is the fibrous connective tissue that anchors a tooth to the surrounding bone. It sits in the space between the cementum on the root surface and the alveolar bone of the socket, with collagen fibers (Sharpey's fibers) extending into both cementum and bone to hold the tooth in place. This tissue isn’t hard like bone or cementum; instead, it’s a flexible, vascular, and innervated network of fibers that cushions chewing forces, allows slight tooth movement, and helps transmit occlusal loads to the bone. Cementum is a mineralized layer on the root that provides attachment to the ligament, but it itself is not fibrous connective tissue. Pulp is the soft tissue inside the tooth, and alveolar bone is bone, not fibrous connective tissue.