Sharks don’t have bones. Instead, their skeletons are made from mineralized cartilage that helps them constantly move through water. To understand the internal “sharkitecture” that helps keep these animals strong and graceful, researchers are putting sharks under the microscope.
A new study, published in ACS Nano, found some surprising results. After analyzing shark cartilage, there appear to be two different regions within it. And each appears to have vastly different structures. These structures have shown a resistance to destruction and could inspire strong, flexible materials for the future.
An X-ray nanotomography reconstruction of the intermedial cartilage of a blacktip shark. The colors indicate the thickness of the struts, with red representing thicker areas and blue indicating thinner ones. (Image Credit: Florida Atlantic University)
Florida Atlantic University
Sharks are powerful and efficient creatures. Thanks to their skeletal frame, made of mineralized cartilage, their spines can act like a spring, which stores ...
