Kurzfassung

Silica is one major mineral involved in biomineralization. The skeletons of many single- and multi-cellular organisms consist of biogenic silica (hydrated amorphous SiO2; “biosilica”). In the last few years, first insights have been gained into the molecular mechanisms underlying the formation of these highly ordered skeletal structures, especially in sponges and diatoms. A major step forward to the elucidation - on the molecular level - of the formation of siliceous spicules in sponges was...Silica is one major mineral involved in biomineralization. The skeletons of many single- and multi-cellular organisms consist of biogenic silica (hydrated amorphous SiO2; “biosilica”). In the last few years, first insights have been gained into the molecular mechanisms underlying the formation of these highly ordered skeletal structures, especially in sponges and diatoms. A major step forward to the elucidation - on the molecular level - of the formation of siliceous spicules in sponges was the finding that the axial organic filament of spicules is in fact an enzyme, termed silicatein, which mediates the apposition of amorphous silica and hence the formation of spicules. Silicatein is closely related to the protease cathepsin. The aim of this project is to study evolution of the silicatein and cathepsin gene family in marine and freshwater sponges and to elucidate the mechanisms of biosilica formation in the two classes of siliceous sponges, the Demosponges and the Heactinellida. Based on this knowledge novel strategies for the industrial use of biosilica in the fields of nanobiotechnology and biomedicine will be designed. » weiterlesen» einklappen