Laboratorio de Estudios Cristalográficos, Instituto Andaluz de Ciencias de la Tierra, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas-Universidad de Granada, Avenida de las Palmeras 4, Armilla, Granada 18100, Spain.
Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL 32306-4390, USA.
Sci Adv. 2017 Mar 17;3(3):e1602285. doi: 10.1126/sciadv.1602285. eCollection 2017 Mar.
Purely inorganic reactions of silica, metal carbonates, and metal hydroxides can produce self-organized complex structures that mimic the texture of biominerals, the morphology of primitive organisms, and that catalyze prebiotic reactions. To date, these fascinating structures have only been synthesized using model solutions. We report that mineral self-assembly can be also obtained from natural alkaline silica-rich water deriving from serpentinization. Specifically, we demonstrate three main types of mineral self-assembly: (i) nanocrystalline biomorphs of barium carbonate and silica, (ii) mesocrystals and crystal aggregates of calcium carbonate with complex biomimetic textures, and (iii) osmosis-driven metal silicate hydrate membranes that form compartmentalized, hollow structures. Our results suggest that silica-induced mineral self-assembly could have been a common phenomenon in alkaline environments of early Earth and Earth-like planets.
纯无机的二氧化硅、金属碳酸盐和金属氢氧化物的反应可以产生模拟生物矿物结构、原始生物形态的自组织复杂结构，并催化前生物反应。迄今为止，这些引人入胜的结构仅使用模型溶液进行合成。我们报告说，矿物自组装也可以从源自蛇纹石化的天然碱性富硅水中获得。具体来说，我们展示了三种主要类型的矿物自组装：（i）钡碳酸盐和二氧化硅的纳米晶生物形态，（ii）具有复杂仿生纹理的碳酸钙的介晶和晶体聚集体，以及（iii）渗透驱动的金属硅酸盐水合物膜，形成分隔的、空心的结构。我们的结果表明，硅诱导的矿物自组装可能是早期地球和类地行星碱性环境中的一种常见现象。
