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de Frutos M, Rodríguez-Navarro AB, Li X, Checa AG. Nanoscale Analysis of the Structure and Composition of Biogenic Calcite Reveals the Biomineral Growth Pattern. ACS NANO 2023; 17:2829-2839. [PMID: 36696398 DOI: 10.1021/acsnano.2c11169] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
The vast majority of calcium carbonate biocrystals differ from inorganic crystals in that they display a patent nanoroughness consisting of lumps of crystalline material (calcite/aragonite) surrounded by amorphous pellicles. Scanning transmission electron microscopy coupled with electron energy loss spectroscopy (STEM-EELS) was used to map the calcite secreted by a barnacle chemically and structurally with ultrahigh resolution (down to 1 nm). The material is composed of irregular lumps of calcite (up to two hundred nm in diameter) surrounded by relatively continuous cortexes (up to 20 nm thick) of amorphous calcium carbonate (ACC) and/or nanocalcite plus biomolecules, with a surplus of calcium relative to carbonate. We develop a model by which the separation of the crystalline and amorphous phases takes place upon crystallization of the calcite from a precursor ACC. The organic biomolecules are expelled from the crystal lattice and concentrate in the form of pellicles, where they stabilize minor amounts of ACC/nanocalcite. In this way, we change the previously established conception of biomineral structure and growth.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marta de Frutos
- Laboratoire de Physique des Solides (LPS), CNRS UMR 8502, Université Paris-Saclay, F-91405 Orsay, France
| | | | - Xiaoyan Li
- Laboratoire de Physique des Solides (LPS), CNRS UMR 8502, Université Paris-Saclay, F-91405 Orsay, France
| | - Antonio G Checa
- Departamento de Estratigrafía y Paleontología, Universidad de Granada, ES-18071 Granada, Spain
- Instituto Andaluz de Ciencias de la Tierra, CSIC-Universidad de Granada, 18100 Armilla, Spain
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2
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Varas O, Pulgar J, Duarte C, García-Herrera C, Abarca-Ortega A, Grenier C, Rodríguez-Navarro AB, Zapata J, Lagos NA, García-Huidobro MR, Aldana M. Parasitism by metacercariae modulates the morphological, organic and mechanical responses of the shell of an intertidal bivalve to environmental drivers. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2022; 830:154747. [PMID: 35337870 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.154747] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2021] [Revised: 03/04/2022] [Accepted: 03/18/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Environmental variation alters biological interactions and their ecological and evolutionary consequences. In coastal systems, trematode parasites affect their hosts by disrupting their life-history traits. However, the effects of parasitism could be variable and dependent on the prevailing environmental conditions where the host-parasite interaction occurs. This study compared the effect of a trematode parasite in the family Renicolidae (metacercariae) on the body size and the shell organic and mechanical characteristics of the intertidal mussels Perumytilus purpuratus, inhabiting two environmentally contrasting localities in northern and central Chile (ca. 1600 km apart). Congruent with the environmental gradient along the Chilean coast, higher levels of temperature, salinity and pCO2, and a lower pH characterise the northern locality compared to that of central Chile. In the north, parasitised individuals showed lower body size and shell resistance than non-parasitised individuals, while in central Chile, the opposite pattern was observed. Protein level in the organic matter of the shell was lower in the parasitised hosts than in the non-parasitised ones regardless of the locality. However, an increase in polysaccharide levels was observed in the parasitised individuals from central Chile. These results evidence that body size and shell properties of P. purpuratus vary between local populations and that they respond differently when confronting the parasitism impacts. Considering that the parasite prevalence reaches around 50% in both populations, if parasitism is not included in the analysis, the true response of the host species would be masked by the effects of the parasite, skewing our understanding of how environmental variables will affect marine species. Considering parasitism and identifying its effects on host species faced with environmental drivers is essential to understand and accurately predict the ecological consequences of climate change.
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Affiliation(s)
- Oscar Varas
- Centro de Investigación e Innovación para el Cambio Climático (CiiCC), Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Santo Tomás, Ejército 146, Santiago, Chile; Departamento de Ecología y Biodiversidad, Facultas de Ciencias de la Vida, Universidad Andres Bello, República 440, Santiago, Chile
| | - José Pulgar
- Departamento de Ecología y Biodiversidad, Facultas de Ciencias de la Vida, Universidad Andres Bello, República 440, Santiago, Chile
| | - Cristian Duarte
- Departamento de Ecología y Biodiversidad, Facultas de Ciencias de la Vida, Universidad Andres Bello, República 440, Santiago, Chile
| | - Claudio García-Herrera
- Laboratorio de Biomecánica y Biomateriales, Departamento de Ingeniería Mecánica, Universidad de Santiago de Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - Aldo Abarca-Ortega
- Centro de Tecnología Biomédica, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, 28223 Pozuelo de Alarcón, Madrid, Spain; Laboratorio de Biomecánica y Biomateriales, Departamento de Ingeniería Mecánica, Universidad de Santiago de Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - Cristian Grenier
- Departamento de Estratigrafía y Paleontología, Universidad de Granada, Granada, Spain; Departamento de Mineralogía y Petrología, Universidad de Granada, Granada, Spain
| | | | - Javier Zapata
- Departamento de Ecología, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - Nelson A Lagos
- Centro de Investigación e Innovación para el Cambio Climático (CiiCC), Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Santo Tomás, Ejército 146, Santiago, Chile
| | - M Roberto García-Huidobro
- Centro de Investigación e Innovación para el Cambio Climático (CiiCC), Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Santo Tomás, Ejército 146, Santiago, Chile; Programa de Doctorado en Conservación y Gestión de la Biodiversidad, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Santo Tomás, Ejército 146, Santiago, Chile.
| | - Marcela Aldana
- Centro de Investigación e Innovación para el Cambio Climático (CiiCC), Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Santo Tomás, Ejército 146, Santiago, Chile; Programa de Doctorado en Conservación y Gestión de la Biodiversidad, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Santo Tomás, Ejército 146, Santiago, Chile
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3
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Chan BKK, Wong YH, Robinson NJ, Lin JC, Yu SP, Dreyer N, Cheng IJ, Høeg JT, Zardus JD. Five hundred million years to mobility: directed locomotion and its ecological function in a turtle barnacle. Proc Biol Sci 2021; 288:20211620. [PMID: 34610769 PMCID: PMC8493200 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2021.1620] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/02/2021] [Accepted: 09/13/2021] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Movement is a fundamental characteristic of life, yet some invertebrate taxa, such as barnacles, permanently affix to a substratum as adults. Adult barnacles became 'sessile' over 500 Ma; however, we confirm that the epizoic sea turtle barnacle, Chelonibia testudinaria, has evolved the capacity for self-directed locomotion as adults. We also assess how these movements are affected by water currents and the distance between conspecifics. Finally, we microscopically examine the barnacle cement. Chelonibia testudinaria moved distances up to 78.6 mm yr-1 on loggerhead and green sea turtle hosts. Movements on live hosts and on acrylic panels occasionally involved abrupt course alterations of up to 90°. Our findings showed that barnacles tended to move directly against water flow and independent of nearby conspecifics. This suggests that these movements are not passively driven by external forces and instead are behaviourally directed. In addition, it indicates that these movements function primarily to facilitate feeding, not reproduction. While the mechanism enabling movement remained elusive, we observed that trails of cement bore signs of multi-layered, episodic secretion. We speculate that proximal causes of movement involve one or a combination of rapid shell growth, cement secretion coordinated with basal membrane lifting, and directed contraction of basal perimeter muscles.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Yue Him Wong
- Institute for Advanced Study, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, China
| | | | - Jr-Chi Lin
- Biodiversity Research Center, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Sing-Pei Yu
- Biodiversity Research Center, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Niklas Dreyer
- Biodiversity Research Center, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan
- Taiwan International Graduate Program, TIGP, Biodiversity, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan
- Department of Life Sciences, National Taiwan Normal University, Taipei, Taiwan
- Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - I-Jiung Cheng
- Institute of Marine Biology, National Taiwan Ocean University, Keelung, Taiwan
| | - Jens T. Høeg
- Marine Biology Section, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
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4
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García-Huidobro MR, Poupin MJ, Urrutia C, Rodriguez-Navarro AB, Grenier C, Vivanco JF, Ramajo L, Benjumeda I, Lagos NA, Lardies MA. An intrapopulational study of organic compounds and biomechanical properties of the shell of the Antarctic bivalve Laternula elliptica (P. P. King, 1832) at King George Island. Polar Biol 2021. [DOI: 10.1007/s00300-021-02882-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
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5
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Chan BKK, Dreyer N, Gale AS, Glenner H, Ewers-Saucedo C, Pérez-Losada M, Kolbasov GA, Crandall KA, Høeg JT. The evolutionary diversity of barnacles, with an updated classification of fossil and living forms. Zool J Linn Soc 2021. [DOI: 10.1093/zoolinnean/zlaa160] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
Abstract
We present a comprehensive revision and synthesis of the higher-level classification of the barnacles (Crustacea: Thecostraca) to the genus level and including both extant and fossils forms. We provide estimates of the number of species in each group. Our classification scheme has been updated based on insights from recent phylogenetic studies and attempts to adjust the higher-level classifications to represent evolutionary lineages better, while documenting the evolutionary diversity of the barnacles. Except where specifically noted, recognized taxa down to family are argued to be monophyletic from molecular analysis and/or morphological data. Our resulting classification divides the Thecostraca into the subclasses Facetotecta, Ascothoracida and Cirripedia. The whole class now contains 14 orders, 65 families and 367 genera. We estimate that barnacles consist of 2116 species. The taxonomy is accompanied by a discussion of major morphological events in barnacle evolution and justifications for the various rearrangements we propose.
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Affiliation(s)
- Benny K K Chan
- Biodiversity Research Center, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Niklas Dreyer
- Biodiversity Research Center, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan
- Department of Life Science, National Taiwan Normal University, Taipei, Taiwan
- Biodiversity Program, Taiwan International Graduate Program, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan
- Natural History Museum of Denmark, Invertebrate Zoology, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Andy S Gale
- School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Portsmouth, Portsmouth, UK
- Department of Earth Sciences, The Natural History Museum, London, UK
| | - Henrik Glenner
- Marine Biodiversity Group, Department of Biology, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway
- Center for Macroecology, Evolution and Climate, GLOBE Institute, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | | | - Marcos Pérez-Losada
- Computational Biology Institute, Department of Biostatistics and Bioinformatics, George Washington University, Washington, DC, USA
- CIBIO-InBIO, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, Universidade do Porto, Vairão, Portugal
| | - Gregory A Kolbasov
- White Sea Biological Station, Biological Faculty of Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia
| | - Keith A Crandall
- Computational Biology Institute, Department of Biostatistics and Bioinformatics, George Washington University, Washington, DC, USA
- Department of Invertebrate Zoology, US National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Jens T Høeg
- Marine Biology Section, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
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6
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Yin X, Griesshaber E, Checa A, Nindiyasari-Behal F, Sánchez-Almazo I, Ziegler A, Schmahl WW. Calcite crystal orientation patterns in the bilayers of laminated shells of benthic rotaliid foraminifera. J Struct Biol 2021; 213:107707. [PMID: 33581285 DOI: 10.1016/j.jsb.2021.107707] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/13/2020] [Revised: 01/26/2021] [Accepted: 02/01/2021] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Shells of calcifying foraminifera play a major role in marine biogeochemical cycles; fossil shells form important archives for paleoenvironment reconstruction. Despite their importance in many Earth science disciplines, there is still little consensus on foraminiferal shell mineralization. Geochemical, biochemical, and physiological studies showed that foraminiferal shell formation might take place through various and diverse mineralization mechanisms. In this study, we contribute to benthic foraminiferal shell calcification through deciphering crystallite organization within the shells. We base our conclusions on results gained from electron backscattered diffraction (EBSD) measurements and describe microstructure/texture characteristics within the laminated shell walls of the benthic, symbiontic foraminifera: Ammonia tepida, Amphistegina lobifera, Amphistegina lessonii. We highlight crystallite assembly patterns obtained on differently oriented cuts and discuss crystallite sizes, morphologies, interlinkages, orientations, and co-orientation strengths. We show that: (i) crystals within benthic foraminiferal shells are mesocrystals, (ii) have dendritic-fractal morphologies and (iii) interdigitate strongly. Based on crystal size, we (iv) differentiate between the two layers that comprise the shells and demonstrate that (v) crystals in the septa have different assemblies relative to those in the shell walls. We highlight that (vi) at junctions of different shell elements the axis of crystal orientation jumps abruptly such that their assembly in EBSD maps has a bimodal distribution. We prove (vii) extensive twin-formation within foraminiferal calcite; we demonstrate (viii) the presence of two twin modes: 60°/[001] and 77°/~[6 -6 1] and visualize their distributions within the shells. In a broader perspective, we draw conclusions on processes that lead to the observed microstructure/texture patterns.
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Affiliation(s)
- X Yin
- Department für Geo- und Umweltwissenschaften, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, 80333 Munich, Germany.
| | - E Griesshaber
- Department für Geo- und Umweltwissenschaften, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, 80333 Munich, Germany
| | - A Checa
- Departamento de Estratigrafía y Paleontología, Universidad de Granada, Granada, Spain, and Instituto Andaluz de Ciencias de la Tierra, CSIC-Universidad de Granada, Armilla, Spain
| | | | - I Sánchez-Almazo
- Centro de Instrumentación Científica, Universidad de Granada, 18071 Granada, Spain
| | - A Ziegler
- Zentrale Einrichtung Elektronenmikroskopie, Universität Ulm, 89081 Ulm, Germany
| | - W W Schmahl
- Department für Geo- und Umweltwissenschaften, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, 80333 Munich, Germany
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7
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Checa AG, Macías-Sánchez E, Rodríguez-Navarro AB, Sánchez-Navas A, Lagos NA. Origin of the biphase nature and surface roughness of biogenic calcite secreted by the giant barnacle Austromegabalanus psittacus. Sci Rep 2020; 10:16784. [PMID: 33033294 PMCID: PMC7544902 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-73804-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/06/2020] [Accepted: 09/23/2020] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
The calcite grains forming the wall plates of the giant barnacle Austramegabalanus psittacus have a distinctive surface roughness made of variously sized crystalline nanoprotrusions covered by extremely thin amorphous pellicles. This biphase (crystalline-amorphous) structure also penetrates through the crystal’s interiors, forming a web-like structure. Nanoprotrusions very frequently elongate following directions related to the crystallographic structure of calcite, in particular, the <− 441> directions, which are the strongest periodic bond chains (PBCs) in calcite. We propose that the formation of elongated nanoprotrusions happens during the crystallization of calcite from a precursor amorphous calcium carbonate (ACC). This is because biomolecules integrated within the ACC are expelled from such PBCs due to the force of crystallization, with the consequent formation of uninterrupted crystalline nanorods. Expelled biomolecules accumulate in adjacent regions, thereby stabilizing small pellicle-like volumes of ACC. With growth, such pellicles become occluded within the crystal. In summary, the surface roughness of the biomineral surface reflects the complex shape of the crystallization front, and the biphase structure provides evidence for crystallization from an amorphous precursor. The surface roughness is generally explained as resulting from the attachment of ACC particles to the crystal surface, which later crystallised in concordance with the crystal lattice. If this was the case, the nanoprotrusions do not reflect the size and shape of any precursor particle. Accordingly, the particle attachment model for biomineral formation should seek new evidence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Antonio G Checa
- Departamento de Estratigrafía y Paleontología, Universidad de Granada, 18071, Granada, Spain. .,Instituto Andaluz de Ciencias de la Tierra, CSIC-Universidad de Granada, 18100, Armilla, Spain.
| | - Elena Macías-Sánchez
- Radboud University Medical Center, Radboud Institute for Molecular Life Sciences, 6500 HB, Nijmegen, The Netherlands.,Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces, 14476, Potsdam, Germany
| | | | - Antonio Sánchez-Navas
- Departamento de Mineralogía y Petrología, Universidad de Granada, 18071, Granada, Spain
| | - Nelson A Lagos
- Centro de Investigación e Innovación para el Cambio Climático, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Santo Tomás, Santiago, Chile
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8
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García-Huidobro MR, Aldana M, Varas O, Pulgar J, García-Herrera C, Abarca-Ortega A, Grenier C, Rodríguez-Navarro AB, Lagos NA. Geographical variability and parasitism on body size, reproduction and shell characteristics of the keyhole limpet Fissurella crassa (Mollusca: Vetigastropoda). MARINE ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH 2020; 161:105060. [PMID: 33070932 DOI: 10.1016/j.marenvres.2020.105060] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/17/2020] [Revised: 06/28/2020] [Accepted: 07/02/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Environmental variation may alter biological interactions and their ecological consequences. For instance, in marine ecosystems hosts and parasites are subject to environmental variability across latitudinal gradients, and their co-evolutionary dynamics may be the result of the interplay with local physical-chemical variables in seawater. Thus, assessing the environmental conditions required for a host in order to improve their survival is essential to understand the host-parasite interaction and dynamics. In this study, we evaluated the impact of parasitism by Proctoeces humboldti on the body size and reproduction of the intertidal keyhole limpet Fissurella crassa collected from three populations spanning ca. 1500 km along the latitudinal gradient of the Chilean coast. In addition, for the first time, we explore whether the effect of parasitism can be extended to changes in the organic composition and mechanical properties of the host shell. Our results show that parasitism prevalence and intensity, and body size of F. crassa increased in central Chile (ca. 33°S). Unlike body size, which was greater in parasitized limpets than in non-parasitized limpets at the three study sites, reproductive performance followed this trend only in central Chile populations, with no differences between parasitized and non-parasitized limpets collected in the northern Chilean (ca. 23°S), and lower in parasitized than non-parasitized individuals from the south-central Chile (ca. 37°S). The organic composition of F. crassa shells showed significant differences between parasite conditions (e.g. polysaccharides and water decreased in parasitized limpets) and across sites (e.g. proteins levels increase in shell of parasitized limpets from central Chile, but decreased at south-central Chile). However, variability in shell mechanical properties (e.g. toughness and elastic module) do not showed significant differences across sites and parasitism condition. These results suggest the interplay of both parasitism and environmental fluctuations upon the reproductive performance and morphology of the host. In addition, our result highlight that the host may also trade-offs reproduction, growth and shell organic composition to maintain the shell functionality (e.g. protection for mechanical forces and durophagous predators).
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Affiliation(s)
- M Roberto García-Huidobro
- Centro de Investigación e Innovación para el Cambio Climático (CiiCC), Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Santo Tomás, Ejército 146, Santiago, Chile; Doctorado en Conservación y Gestión de la Biodiversidad, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Santo Tomás, Ejército 146, Santiago, Chile.
| | - Marcela Aldana
- Centro de Investigación e Innovación para el Cambio Climático (CiiCC), Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Santo Tomás, Ejército 146, Santiago, Chile; Doctorado en Conservación y Gestión de la Biodiversidad, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Santo Tomás, Ejército 146, Santiago, Chile
| | - Oscar Varas
- Departamento de Ecología y Biodiversidad, Facultad de Ciencias de la Vida, Universidad Andres Bello, República 440, Santiago, Chile
| | - José Pulgar
- Departamento de Ecología y Biodiversidad, Facultad de Ciencias de la Vida, Universidad Andres Bello, República 440, Santiago, Chile
| | - Claudio García-Herrera
- Laboratorio de Biomateriales y Biomecánica, Departamento de Ingeniería Mecánica, Universidad de Santiago de Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - Aldo Abarca-Ortega
- Laboratorio de Biomateriales y Biomecánica, Departamento de Ingeniería Mecánica, Universidad de Santiago de Chile, Santiago, Chile; Centro de Tecnología Biomédica, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, 28223, Pozuelo de Alarcón, Madrid, Spain
| | - Christian Grenier
- Departamento de Estratigrafía y Paleontología, Universidad de Granada, Granada, Spain; Departamento de Mineralogía y Petrología, Universidad de Granada, Granada, Spain
| | | | - Nelson A Lagos
- Centro de Investigación e Innovación para el Cambio Climático (CiiCC), Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Santo Tomás, Ejército 146, Santiago, Chile
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Metzler RA, O'Malley J, Herrick J, Christensen B, Orihuela B, Rittschof D, Dickinson GH. Amphibalanus amphitrite begins exoskeleton mineralization within 48 hours of metamorphosis. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2020; 7:200725. [PMID: 33047034 PMCID: PMC7540746 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.200725] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/01/2020] [Accepted: 09/03/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Barnacles are ancient arthropods that, as adults, are surrounded by a hard, mineralized, outer shell that the organism produces for protection. While extensive research has been conducted on the glue-like cement that barnacles use to adhere to surfaces, less is known about the barnacle exoskeleton, especially the process by which the barnacle exoskeleton is formed. Here, we present data exploring the changes that occur as the barnacle cyprid undergoes metamorphosis to become a sessile juvenile with a mineralized exoskeleton. Scanning electron microscope data show dramatic morphological changes in the barnacle exoskeleton following metamorphosis. Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy indicates a small amount of calcium (8%) 1 h post-metamorphosis that steadily increases to 28% by 2 days following metamorphosis. Raman spectroscopy indicates calcite in the exoskeleton of a barnacle 2 days following metamorphosis and no detectable calcium carbonate in exoskeletons up to 3 h post-metamorphosis. Confocal microscopy indicates during this 2 day period, barnacle base plate area and height increases rapidly (0.001 mm2 h-1 and 0.30 µm h-1, respectively). These results provide critical information into the early life stages of the barnacle, which will be important for developing an understanding of how ocean acidification might impact the calcification process of the barnacle exoskeleton.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rebecca A. Metzler
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Colgate University, 13 Oak Drive, Hamilton, NY 13346, USA
| | - Jessica O'Malley
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Colgate University, 13 Oak Drive, Hamilton, NY 13346, USA
| | - Jack Herrick
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Colgate University, 13 Oak Drive, Hamilton, NY 13346, USA
| | - Brett Christensen
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Colgate University, 13 Oak Drive, Hamilton, NY 13346, USA
| | - Beatriz Orihuela
- Marine Science and Conservation, Duke University Marine Laboratory, 135 Duke Marine Lab Road, Beaufort, NC 28516, USA
| | - Daniel Rittschof
- Department of Biology, The College of New Jersey, 2000 Pennington Road, Ewing, NJ 08628, USA
| | - Gary H. Dickinson
- Department of Biology, The College of New Jersey, 2000 Pennington Road, Ewing, NJ 08628, USA
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Checa AG, González-Segura A, Rodríguez-Navarro AB, Lagos NA. Microstructure and crystallography of the wall plates of the giant barnacle Austromegabalanus psittacus: a material organized by crystal growth. J R Soc Interface 2020; 17:20190743. [PMID: 32126195 DOI: 10.1098/rsif.2019.0743] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
In biomineralization, it is essential to know the microstructural and crystallographic organization of natural hard tissues. This knowledge is virtually absent in the case of barnacles. Here, we have examined the crystal morphology and orientation of the wall plates of the giant barnacle Austromegabalanus psittacus by means of optical and electron microscopy, and electron backscatter diffraction. The wall plates are made of calcite grains, which change in morphology from irregular to rhombohedral, except for the radii and alae, where fibrous calcite is produced. Both the grains and fibres arrange into bundles made of crystallographically co-oriented units, which grow onto each other epitaxially. We call these areas crystallographically coherent regions (CCRs). Each CCR elongates and disposes its c-axis perpendicularly or at a high angle to the growth surfaces, whereas the a-axes of adjacent CCRs differ in orientation. In the absence of obvious organic matrices, this pattern of organization is interpreted to be produced by purely crystallographic processes. In particular, due to crystal competition, CCRs orient their fastest growth axes perpendicular to the growth surface. Since each CCR is an aggregate of grains, the fastest growth axis is that along which crystals stack up more rapidly, that is, the crystallographic c-axis in granular calcite. In summary, the material forming the wall plates of the studied barnacles is under very little biological control and the main role of the mantle cells is to provide the construction materials to the growth front.
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Affiliation(s)
- Antonio G Checa
- Departamento de Estratigrafía y Paleontología, Universidad de Granada, 18071 Granada, Spain.,Instituto Andaluz de Ciencias de la Tierra, CSIC-Universidad de Granada, 18100 Armilla, Spain
| | | | | | - Nelson A Lagos
- Centro de Investigación e Innovación para el Cambio Climático, Universidad Santo Tomás, Santiago, Chile
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