Biomineralization in invertebrates

Abstract

Biomineralizacija je široko rasprostranjen i raznolik proces što dokazuju 64 dosad poznata minerala koje stvaraju organizmi iz svih klastera eukariota. Stoga je područje od interesa i brojna istraživanja su usmjerena otkrivanju detalja tog procesa. Bez obzira na sve danas poznate informacije i dalje nemamo pravu sliku o tome na koji način organizmi stvaraju minerale. Ipak znamo mnogo o tome kako kontroliraju nastanak minerala i to je ono što čini biološki kontroliranu mineralizaciju. Moramo imati na umu da dosad stvorene podjele služe kako bi nama olakšale razumijevanje procesa biomineralizacije i da u stvarnosti podjele nisu toliko jasne. Biomineralizacija se odvija na razinama koje snažno utječu na biosferu, kao što su kemijski sastav oceana ili sastav sedimentnih stijena. U ovom radu detaljnije su obrađeni školjkaši koji su vrlo istraženi zbog korištenja u komercijalne svrhe pa i zbog proizvodnje bisera. Osim školjkaša, bodljikaši su također poznati biomineralizatori zbog specifičnih struktura koje formiraju i stoga su obrađeni u ovom radu.Biomineralization is a widespread and diverse process that is demonstrated by 64 known minerals that are produced by organisms from all eukaryotic clasters. That is why it is an area of interest and numerous researches are aimed at revealing the details of this process. Despite all the information we know today, we still have no real picture of how organisms produce minerals. However, we know a lot about how they control mineral formation and that is what makes biologically controlled mineralization. We have to keep in mind that the divisions created so far are used to make it easier for us to understand the biomineralization process and that in reality divisions are not so clear. Biomineralization occurs on such level that it strongly affects biosphere, such as ocean chemistry or composition of sedimentary rocks. In this paper, bivalves are thoroughly discussed because they are used for commercial purposes and also for the production of pearls. Besides bivalves, echinoderms are also well known biomineralists due to specific structures that they form and are therefore covered in this paper