Detection of interaction between biomineralising proteins and calcium carbonate microcrystals

• Hanna Rademaker and
• Malte Launspach

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2011, 2, 222–227, doi:10.3762/bjnano.2.26

• brittle calcium carbonate mineral platelets embedded in a mechanically weak organic layer, nature has created a tough material. For recent reviews dealing with biomineralisation and especially nacre consult [2] and [3]. The fracture resistance of the whole shell and especially nacre, which consists of

• unspecific binding seems unlikely, since lanes A and C (Figure 4) show no difference in intensity. Verification of a specific binding would be most interesting, because this would be evidence that protein–mineral interaction guide polymorph selection and morphology of the calcium carbonate crystals. This

• on the molecular to atomic scale and conducting further experiments. Experimental As we stated several times above, the detection of interaction between biomineralising proteins and calcium carbonate microcrystals in this study is based on a modified approach from [1]. The main differences between