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SHELLS ARE TOUGH. "Nacre is composed of hexagonal platelets of aragonite ... arranged in a continuous parallel lamina. These layers are separated by sheets of organic matrix composed of elastic biopolymers (such as chitin, lustrin and silk-like proteins). This mixture of brittle platelets and the thin layers of elastic biopolymers makes the material strong and resilient." https://lnkd.in/da6Ufu6 View in LinkedIn

MOTHER OF PEARL, or "Nacre consists of 97 percent lime, but has a thousand times higher breaking strength." https://lnkd.in/dyrsJF9 View in LinkedIn

"THE MODULAR DESIGN of the molluskan mantle, along with distinct patterning mechanisms within each zone, allows for immense variation in shell structure and pattern in shell-building mollusks ... is likely to have provided the foundation from which the incredible diversity of molluskan shell shapes and patterns has evolved." https://lnkd.in/daJFnVB View in LinkedIn

MATHEMATICS OF SEASHELL IRIDESCENCE. Here it is in a single elegant descriptive formula based on beautiful multilayered structures shared by some shells and some beetles. http://home.hiroshima-u.ac.jp/~kin/publications/PG00/iridescent_colors.pdf View in LinkedIn

MANTLE ZONES. "The spatial expression profiles of mantle genes that belong to the secretome is restricted to discrete mantle zones, with each zone responsible for the fabrication of one of the structural layers of the shell. Patterned expression of a subset of genes along the length of the mantle is indicative of roles in shell ornamentation." https://lnkd.in/daJFnVB View in LinkedIn

FUNCTION OF IRIDESCENCE. "Because iridescent colours are so striking in appearance, it is tempting to ascribe a communicative function to all forms of iridescence. Yet, the evolution of iridescence predates the evolution of eyes … not all iridescent colours function in communication." A lovely review. https://lnkd.in/dmEiMbu View in LinkedIn

NOVEL PROTEINS. "Over 25% of the genes expressed in the mantle of the vetigastropod Haliotis asinina encode secreted proteins, indicating that hundreds of proteins are likely to be contributing to shell fabrication and patterning. Almost 85% of the secretome encodes novel proteins." https://lnkd.in/daJFnVB View in LinkedIn

SHELL PHOTONIC CRYSTALS. "The dry ligament of Pinctada maxima normally appears black; however, it can exhibit striking blue structural colors after being wetted by water. The field-mission SEM investigation shows that the ligament is made of lamellae … the fibers are highly aligned characterized by a 2D photonic crystal type structure." http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11434-007-0142-z View in LinkedIn

GENETIC CONTROL OF NANOFABRICATION. "Instructions to fabricate mineralized structures with distinct nanoscale architectures, such as seashells and coral and vertebrate skeletons, are encoded in the genomes of a wide variety of animals." https://lnkd.in/daJFnVB View in LinkedIn

STRUCTURAL COLORS OF NACRE. "The lustrous nacre of the abalone shell is made up of polygonal (usually hexagonal) tiles of a very hard crystalline form of calcium carbonate, aragonite, cemented in a thin matrix of conchiolin – polysaccharide and protein fibres. The tiles are each a single crystal and are tessellated in stacked layers. Each layer is 0.5 micron thick.” https://lnkd.in/d8KK5dD View in LinkedIn