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Guanine-Based Photonic Crystals in Fish Scales Form from an Amorphous Precursor†

  1. Dvir Gur1,
  2. Dr. Yael Politi2,
  3. Prof. Berta Sivan3,
  4. Prof. Peter Fratzl2,
  5. Prof. Steve Weiner1,
  6. Prof. Lia Addadi1,*

Article first published online: 5 SEP 2012

DOI: 10.1002/anie.201205336

Issue

Angewandte Chemie International Edition

Angewandte Chemie International Edition

Volume 52, Issue 1, pages 388–391, January 2, 2013

Additional Information

How to Cite

Gur, D., Politi, Y., Sivan, B., Fratzl, P., Weiner, S. and Addadi, L. (2013), Guanine-Based Photonic Crystals in Fish Scales Form from an Amorphous Precursor . Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., 52: 388–391. doi: 10.1002/anie.201205336

Author Information

  1. 1

    Department of Structural Biology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, 76100 (Israel)

  2. 2

    Department of Biomaterials, Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces, 14424 Potsdam (Germany)

  3. 3

    Department of Animal Sciences, Faculty of Agriculture, Hebrew University, Rehovot 76100 (Israel)

*Department of Structural Biology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, 76100 (Israel)

  1. †

    We thank Dr. S. Siegel, Dr. C. Li and Dr. I. Zizak for their invaluable help in the μ-Spot X-ray diffraction studies. We thank the Mag Noi company from Kibbutz Gan Shmuel Israel, for supplying the fish. X-ray studies were conducted at the μ-Spot beamline of the BESSY II synchrotron radiation facility, which is part of the Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin für Materialien und Energie, and received funding from the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007-2013) under grant agreement no. 226716. The research was supported by a German Research Foundation grant, within the framework of the Deutsch-Israelische Projektkooperation DIP. L.A. is the incumbent of the Dorothy and Patrick Gorman Professorial Chair of Biological Ultrastructure, and S.W. of the Dr. Trude Burchardt Professorial Chair of Structural Biology.

Publication History

  1. Issue published online: 20 DEC 2012
  2. Article first published online: 5 SEP 2012
  3. Manuscript Received: 6 JUL 2012

Funded by

  • European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme. Grant Numbers: FP7/2007-2013, 226716
  • German Research Foundation

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Keywords:

  • amorphous materials;
  • biogenic guanine crystals;
  • photonic crystals;
  • structural colors;
  • X-ray diffraction
Thumbnail image of graphical abstract

Starting from disorder: Anhydrous guanine crystals compose the photonic arrays responsible for the skin and scale iridescence found in Japanese Koi fish. These guanine crystals were found to form in intracellular vesicles (see picture) through an amorphous precursor phase. A combined cryo-SEM and synchrotron radiation X-ray diffraction study showed the evolution of the crystals in great detail.

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