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Templateless crystallization of holococcolith crystals visualized by intracellular site-specific three-dimensional
Oz Ben-Joseph1, Yu-Feng Meng1, Lior Aram1
1Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 7610001, Israel.
PNAS Nexus
|April 20, 2026
Summary
Researchers studied intracellular crystallization in marine algae, revealing how calcite crystals form within cells. A two-step mechanism, involving random nucleation followed by ordering, is proposed for holococcolith biomineralization.
Area of Science:
- Biomineralization
- Marine Biology
- Crystallography
Background:
- Biological crystallization produces complex natural materials, notably calcium carbonate coccoliths by marine algae.
- Understanding intracellular crystal nucleation mechanisms is challenging due to in vivo experimental difficulties.
Purpose of the Study:
- Investigate intracellular crystallization during holococcolith formation.
- Elucidate the nucleation and growth mechanisms of calcite crystals within algal cells.
Main Methods:
- Developed a serial cryo-focused ion beam milling technique for direct access to intracellular precipitation sites.
- Utilized cryo-electron tomography (cryoET) to visualize crystal formation in vivo.
Main Results:
- Observed intracellular calcite precipitation within an isotropic environment.
- Identified biomineralization occurring without discernible templating structures via cryoET.
- Demonstrated nucleation and growth of rhombohedral calcite crystals.
Conclusions:
- Proposed a two-step biomineralization mechanism: initial random nucleation followed by an ordering step.
- Suggested this gradual ordering process may apply to other biomineralization phenomena.
- Advanced understanding of how cells control biomineral formation.
