Nature builds remarkable high-performance composite materials in the shells and skeletons of marine organisms, such as the exceptionally strong microlaminate of the abalone shell (seen in the pearly background of this figure, and in the high-resolution electron micrograph in the upper left). The interlocking brickwork of microscopic, limestone-like crystals and thin sheets of proteins makes this shell 3,000-times stronger than the crystals alone, while the precision of its biological "nanofabrication" (control of structure on an ultra-small scale) far exceeds the present capabilities of human engineering! We know that the blueprints for structures and materials such as these are encoded in the DNA - but how are these blueprints translated into actual construction, and how could we harness these mechanisms? In an exciting new interdisciplinary collaboration that combines the approaches of Molecular Marine Biology and Biotechnology with the skills of colleagues in Physics, Chemistry, Materials Science and Engineering, students and researchers from these different disciplines are working closely together (top center) to discover the proteins, genes and molecular mechanisms that control marine biomineralization, and using these mechanisms to develop new strategies for the synthesis of high-performance composite materials for the technologies of tomorrow.

Members of our team are using the tools of molecular biology, genetic engineering and polymer synthesis in conjunction with the latest developments in advanced imaging technologies (including atomic force microscopy, X-ray and electron-diffraction, solid-state NMR and immunohistochemistry) to reveal and then "capture" the mechanisms controlling the biosynthesis and supramolecular self-assembly of the high-performance mineralized composites of molluscan shells and pearls, the skeletons of corals and the silica structures made by marine sponges and diatoms. They?ve discovered previously unanticipated mechanisms responsible for this control, and found that the unique mechanisms that evolved to control biomineralization can be harnessed for the development of environmentally benign new routes to synthesis of high-performance materials. Gene cloning first reveals the structures of the proteins controlling the biological mineralization; molecular modeling of these proteins (center) then guides our genetic and molecular engineering to alter the structures of the composite materials these polymers control. Potential applications include new optoelectronic, catalytic and microelectronic devices (such as the polymetallic crystalline thin-film semiconductor made under the control of proteins purified from the abalone shell, shown in the upper right), and improved biosensors (such as the DNA chip used for robotic diagnostic screening for HIV, other viral and microbial infectious agents and genetically inherited diseases, illustrated in the lower center). Talented students and researchers are finding excellent opportunities for employment and advanced education as a result of the unique interdisciplinary training they receive in this program. (Polymetallic crystalline thin-film courtesy of Dr. Angela Belcher, UCSB; DNA chip courtesy of Affymetrix Corp.)