Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Experiment Videos

Comparative analysis of macromolecules in mollusc shells

J Keith1, S Stockwell, D Ball

  • 1Biotechnology Division, U.S. Army Natick Research, Development and Engineering Center, MA 01760-5020.

Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology. B, Comparative Biochemistry
|July 1, 1993
PubMed
Summary

Researchers isolated proteins and polysaccharides from mollusc shells, finding unique N-acetyl glucosamine in nautilus. Further analysis included amino acid sequencing and calcium binding studies for these marine biomaterials.

Related Concept Videos

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Stakeholder-informed environmental-economic tradeoffs at the farm and forest scale.

Journal of environmental management·2026
Same author

Continuous heart rate variability monitoring, stress and recovery in doctors: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Occupational medicine (Oxford, England)·2025
Same author

Excitonic absorption and defect-related emission in three-dimensional MoS<sub>2</sub> pyramids.

Nanoscale·2021
Same author

Effective discrimination of gas-phase peptide conformers using TIMS-ECD-ToF MS/MS.

Analytical methods : advancing methods and applications·2021
Same author

Impact of COVID-19 on cancer service delivery: a follow-up international survey of oncology clinicians.

ESMO open·2021
Same author

Dairy cow trade-off preference for 2 different lying qualities: Lying surface and lying space.

Journal of dairy science·2020

Area of Science:

  • Marine biology
  • Biochemistry
  • Materials science

Background:

  • Mollusc shells are complex composites of proteins and polysaccharides.
  • Understanding shell composition can inform biomaterials development.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To isolate and characterize proteins and polysaccharides from three distinct mollusc species.
  • To investigate the presence of N-acetyl glucosamine and perform amino acid analysis.
  • To assess the calcium-binding properties of isolated protein fractions.

Main Methods:

  • Isolation of proteins and polysaccharides from blue mussel (Mytilus edulis), chambered nautilus (Nautilus pompilius), and red abalone (Haliotus rufescens) shells.
  • Detection of N-acetyl glucosamine using biochemical assays.
  • Amino acid analysis of protein fractions and partial sequencing of mussel proteins.

Related Experiment Videos

  • Calcium binding studies with selected protein fractions.

    • Main Results:

    • Proteins and polysaccharides were successfully isolated from all three mollusc species.
    • N-acetyl glucosamine was identified in nautilus shell extracts but not in mussel or abalone.
    • Amino acid composition varied among the species, with partial protein sequences obtained for Mytilus edulis.
    • Preliminary calcium binding activity was observed in some protein fractions.

    Conclusions:

    • Mollusc shells exhibit species-specific biochemical compositions, particularly regarding N-acetyl glucosamine.
    • The characterized proteins and polysaccharides represent potential biomaterials with varied properties.
    • Further research into calcium-binding proteins could yield insights into biomineralization processes.