Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
Chitin (C 8 H 13 O 5 N) n (/ ˈ k aɪ t ɪ n / KY-tin) is a long-chain polymer of N-acetylglucosamine, an amide derivative of glucose. Chitin is the second most abundant polysaccharide in nature (behind only cellulose); an estimated 1 billion tons of chitin are produced each year in the biosphere. [1]
Arthropod cuticle is a biological composite material, consisting of two main portions: fibrous chains of alpha-chitin within a matrix of silk-like and globular proteins, of which the best-known is the rubbery protein called resilin. The relative abundance of these two main components varies from approximately 50/50 to 80/20 chitin protein, with ...
Insects, like all arthropods, have no interior skeleton; instead, they have an exoskeleton, a hard outer layer made mostly of chitin that protects and supports the body. . The insect body is divided into three parts: the head, thorax, and abdomen
They possess an exoskeleton with a cuticle made of chitin, often mineralised with calcium carbonate, a body with differentiated segments, and paired jointed appendages. In order to keep growing, they must go through stages of moulting, a process by which they shed their exoskeleton to reveal a new one. They form an extremely diverse group of up ...
The sea snail Nerita textilis (like all gastropods) deposits a mucus trail as it moves, which a chemoreceptive organ is able to detect and guide the snail back to its home site. [31] It is unclear if chiton homing functions in the same way, but they may leave chemical cues along the rock surface and at the home scar which their olfactory senses ...
The organic constituent is mainly made up of polysaccharides and glycoproteins; [5] its composition may vary widely: some molluscs employ a wide range of chitin-control genes to create their matrix, whereas others express just one, suggesting that the role of chitin in the shell framework is highly variable; [6] it may even be absent in ...
[8] [12] Their bodies are covered by a cuticle (outer covering) that does not contain cells but is secreted by cells in the skin underneath, is made of tough but flexible collagen [8] and does not molt [23] – on the other hand arthropods' cuticles are made of the more rigid α-chitin, [8] [24] and molt until the arthropods reach their full ...
Setae in oligochaetes (a group including earthworms) are largely composed of chitin. [1] They are classified according to the limb to which they are attached; for instance, notosetae are attached to notopodia; neurosetae to neuropodia. [2] Diptera setae are bristles present throughout the body and function as mechanoreceptors.