Rebora Manuela, Salerno Gianandrea, Piersanti Silvana, Kovalev Alexander, Gorb Stanislav N
Dipartimento di Chimica, Biologia e Biotecnologie, University of Perugia, Via Elce di Sotto 8, 06121 Perugia, Italy.
Dipartimento di Scienze Agrarie, Alimentari e Ambientali, University of Perugia, Borgo XX Giugno, 06121 Perugia, Italy.
Beilstein J Nanotechnol. 2023 Apr 17;14:496-508. doi: 10.3762/bjnano.14.41. eCollection 2023.
Micro- and nanostructures of the white and black scales on the tarsi of the mosquito are analysed using scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and fluorescence microscopy. Reflectance spectra of the white areas are measured. No clear difference is present in the morphology of micro- and nanostructures of black and white scales in SEM and TEM, but black scales contain a dark pigment. The white colour of the scales has a structural origin. The structural white produced by the micro- and nanostructures of the scales on the tarsi of appears bright and is angle-dependent, since the reflected light changes according to the angle detection and according to the tarsus orientation. The optical appearance of the scale system of has a complex nature and can be explained by the combination of several effects. Among them, multiple refraction and reflection on the micro- and nanostructures of the scales are mainly responsible for the white appearance. The results suggest that mosquito scales, in addition to their superhydrophobic function, produce structural white. The biological role of white and black patches in mate recognition and defensive behaviour in the mosquitoes of the genus is hypothesized.
利用扫描电子显微镜、透射电子显微镜和荧光显微镜对蚊子跗节上白色和黑色鳞片的微观和纳米结构进行分析。测量白色区域的反射光谱。在扫描电子显微镜和透射电子显微镜下，黑色和白色鳞片的微观和纳米结构形态没有明显差异，但黑色鳞片含有深色色素。鳞片的白色源于结构。蚊子跗节上鳞片的微观和纳米结构产生的结构白色看起来很亮且与角度有关，因为反射光会根据角度检测和跗节方向而变化。蚊子鳞片系统的光学外观具有复杂的性质，可以通过多种效应的组合来解释。其中，鳞片微观和纳米结构上的多次折射和反射是产生白色外观的主要原因。结果表明，蚊子鳞片除了具有超疏水功能外，还能产生结构白色。推测了白色和黑色斑块在该属蚊子的配偶识别和防御行为中的生物学作用。
