Investigation of the role of strontium in the morphogenesis of anisotropic biogenic crystals

We will study Ca/Sr heterogeneities in coccoliths to understand their role in the formation of complex biogenic crystals. We aim to acquire high-resolution 3D X-ray fluorescence (3D-XRF) data from two types of coccoliths (holococcoliths and heterococcoliths) that represent two morphologies: expected calcite habit and asymmetrically grown crystals. We will use the acquired data to correlate Ca/Sr distribution with our previously obtained 3D nanoscale strain maps. We expect that the results of this proposal will allow us to elucidate the role of elemental heterogeneities in the biological control of strain and crystal morphogenesis.

本研究将针对颗石藻（coccolith）中的钙/锶（Ca/Sr）异质性展开分析，以探明其在复杂生物成因晶体形成过程中所发挥的作用。本研究计划采集两类颗石藻——全颗石（holococcolith）与异颗石（heterococcolith）——的高分辨率三维X射线荧光（3D-XRF）数据，这两类颗石藻分别对应两种形貌：预期方解石晶习与不对称生长晶体。本研究将利用所获数据，将钙/锶分布与此前获取的三维纳米级应变分布图进行关联分析。我们预期本研究的成果将帮助我们阐明元素异质性在应变的生物调控以及晶体形态发生过程中所发挥的作用。