#nanostructures

Novel nanostructures in blue sharks reveal their remarkable potential for dynamic color-change

New research into the anatomy of blue sharks (Prionace glauca) reveals a unique nanostructure in their skin that produces their iconic blue coloration, but intriguingly, also suggests a potential capacity for color change. The research was presented at the Society for Experimental Biology Annual Conference in Antwerp, Belgium on July 9, 2025. "Blue is one of the rarest colors in the animal kingdom, and animals have developed a variety of unique strategies through evolution to produce it, making these processes especially fascinating," says Dr. Viktoriia Kamska, a post-doctoral researcher in the lab of Professor Mason Dean at City University of Hong Kong. The team revealed that the secret to the shark's color lies in the pulp cavities of the tooth-like scales—known as dermal denticles— that armor the shark's skin.

Twisty Cristae

New, publicly available platform for analysing the 3D nanostructure of mitochondrial membranes – the convolutions called cristae – in unprecedented detail and in the context of the cell

Read the published research paper here

Video from work by Shogo Suga and Koki Nakamura, and colleagues

Department of Chemistry and Biotechnology, School of Engineering, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan

Image originally published with a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

Published in PLOS Biology, August 2023

some nanostructures notes 🔬