Biomaterials and Biological Materials

Ehrlich, Hermann

doi:10.1007/978-3-319-92483-0_1

Cited by 9 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 72 publications

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“…This compound, known as antipathin, is exclusive to this taxon, and has unequalled thermal and mechanical stability which ensures the stiffness of the coral skeleton. Moreover, the chitin-antipathin based composite shows a unique combination of flexibility and hardness that provides better resistance to stress factors in a marine environment than inorganic structural materials [14]. Beside this, the chemical arrangement of the black coral skeleton also contains proteins, lipids and diphenols, and the chitin content within is estimated to constitute between 6% and 18% of the total organism mass (which is a considerable amount for marine invertebrates).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Drugs 2020, 18, 297; doi:10.3390/md18060297 www.mdpi.com/journal/marinedrugs This most abundant aminopolysaccharide has been isolated and identified in skeletal structures of diverse species of fungi, algae and invertebrates (i.e., sponges, hydrozoans, mollusks, worms, insects, spiders and crustaceans) [2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12]. Here, chitin is present in the form of biocomposites, being chemically bound to proteins, pigments and other polysaccharides, as well as mineral phases [13,14]. Consequently, its extraction from such biocomposites is fraught with a number of methodological difficulties that must be overcome using different approaches.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Electrochemical Approach for Isolation of Chitin from the Skeleton of the Black Coral Cirrhipathes sp. (Antipatharia)

et al. 2020

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The development of novel and effective methods for the isolation of chitin, which remains one of the fundamental aminopolysaccharides within skeletal structures of diverse marine invertebrates, is still relevant. In contrast to numerous studies on chitin extraction from crustaceans, mollusks and sponges, there are only a few reports concerning its isolation from corals, and especially black corals (Antipatharia). In this work, we report the stepwise isolation and identification of chitin from Cirrhipathes sp. (Antipatharia, Antipathidae) for the first time. The proposed method, aiming at the extraction of the chitinous scaffold from the skeleton of black coral species, combined a well-known chemical treatment with in situ electrolysis, using a concentrated Na2SO4 aqueous solution as the electrolyte. This novel method allows the isolation of α-chitin in the form of a microporous membrane-like material. Moreover, the extracted chitinous scaffold, with a well-preserved, unique pore distribution, has been extracted in an astoundingly short time (12 h) compared to the earlier reported attempts at chitin isolation from Antipatharia corals.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Electrochemical Approach for Isolation of Chitin from the Skeleton of the Black Coral Cirrhipathes sp. (Antipatharia)

et al. 2020

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“…The body shape stability of keratose sponges (Fig. 1A, B) relies on fibrillar collagen as a key component of their extracellular collagenous matrix (ECM), that at micro-to macroscale is combined with a highly elastic and elaborate organic skeleton composed of the non-fibrillar collagen spongin (Exposito et al ., 1991; Erpenbeck et al ., 2012; Ehrlich, 2019). Indeed, the fossil record of non-spiculate sponges was described by Reitner & Wörheide (2002) as being poor, noting that the vauxiid sponges of the middle Cambrian Burgess Shale are the best examples (Fig.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Keratose sponges in ancient carbonates – a problem of interpretation

Neuweiler

Kershaw

Boulvain

et al. 2022

Preprint

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Increasing current interest in sponge fossils includes numerous reports of diverse vermicular and peloidal structures interpreted as keratose sponges in Neoproterozoic to Mesozoic carbonates and in various open marine to peritidal and restricted settings. Reports of their occurrence are fundamental and far-reaching for understanding microfacies and diagenesis where they occur; and fossil biotic assemblages, as well as wider aspects of origins of animals, sponge evolution/ecology and the systemic recovery from mass extinctions. Keratose sponges: 1) have elaborate spongin skeletons but no spicules, thus lack mineral parts and therefore have poor preservation potential so that determining their presence in rocks requires interpretation; and 2) are presented in publications as interpreted fossil structures almost entirely in two-dimensional (thin section) studies, where structures claimed as sponges comprise diverse layered, network, particulate and amalgamated fabrics involving calcite sparite in a micritic groundmass. There is no verification of sponges in these cases and almost all of them can be otherwise explained; some are certainly not correctly identified. The diversity of structures seen in thin sections may be reinterpreted to include: a) meiofaunal activity; b) layered, possibly microbial (spongiostromate) accretion; c) sedimentary peloidal to clotted micrites; d) fluid escape and capture resulting in birdseye to vuggy porosities; and e) molds of siliceous sponge spicules. Without confirmation of keratose sponges in ancient carbonates, interpretations of their role in ancient carbonate systems, including facies directly after mass extinctions, are unsafe, and alternative explanations for such structures should be considered. This study calls for greater critical appraisal of evidence, to seek confirmation or not, of keratose sponge presence.

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“…More than 62 biominerals have been identified to date. Selected examples include magnetosomes of magnetotactic bacteria, cell walls of diatoms, coccoliths of coccolithophores, shells of mollusks and brachiopods, spicules of sponges, avian eggshells, as well as vertebrate skeletons and dentitions (Ehrlich 2019; Ehrlich et al 2021). They fulfill functions as diverse as mechanical support, protection against ultraviolet light irradiation, mobility, buoyancy, magnetic orientation, gravity detection, and ion storage.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Applications of Cryogenic Electron Microscopy in Biomineralization Research

et al. 2021

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Biological mineralization is a natural process manifested by living organisms in which inorganic minerals crystallize under the scrupulous control of biomolecules, producing hierarchical organic-inorganic composite structures with physical properties and design that galvanize even the most ardent structural engineer and architect. Understanding the mechanisms that control the formation of biominerals is challenging in the biomimetic engineering of hard tissues. In this regard, the contribution of cryogenic electron microscopy (cryo-EM) has been nothing short of phenomenal. By preserving materials in their native hydrated status and reducing damage caused by ion beam radiation, cryo-EM outperforms conventional transmission electron microscopy in its ability to directly observe the morphologic evolution of mineral precursor phases at different stages of biomineralization with nanoscale spatial resolution and subsecond temporal resolution in 2 or 3 dimensions. In the present review, the development and applications of cryo-EM are discussed to support the use of this powerful technique in dental research. Because of the rapid development of cryogenic sample preparation techniques, direct electron detection, and image-processing algorithms, the last decade has witnessed an exponential increase in the use of cryo-EM in structural biology and materials research. By amalgamating with other analytic techniques, cryo-EM may be used for qualitative and quantitative analyses of the kinetics and thermodynamic mechanisms in which organic macromolecules participate in the transformation of mineral precursors from their original liquid state to amorphous and ultimately crystalline phases. The present review concentrates on the biomineralization of calcium phosphate mineral phases, while that of calcium carbonate, silica, and magnetite is only briefly mentioned. Bioinspired organic matrix–mediated inorganic crystallization strategies are discussed from the perspective of tissue regeneration engineering.

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Biomaterials and Biological Materials

Cited by 9 publications

References 72 publications

Electrochemical Approach for Isolation of Chitin from the Skeleton of the Black Coral Cirrhipathes sp. (Antipatharia)

Electrochemical Approach for Isolation of Chitin from the Skeleton of the Black Coral Cirrhipathes sp. (Antipatharia)

Keratose sponges in ancient carbonates – a problem of interpretation

Applications of Cryogenic Electron Microscopy in Biomineralization Research

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