Collado Gonzalo A, Valladares Moisés A, Suárez Cristian, Seguel Mathias, Cabello-Guzmán Gerardo
Departamento de Ciencias Básicas, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad del Bío-Bío, Avenida Andrés Bello 720, Casilla 447, Chillán 3780000, Chile.
Animals (Basel). 2023 Jul 7;13(13):2231. doi: 10.3390/ani13132231.
The capability to produce pearls is widespread in the phylum Mollusca, including bivalves of the superfamily Unionoidea. Here, we identified and characterized natural pearls formed by , a freshwater clam native to southern South America, using samples obtained from two lakes located in the Chilean Patagonia. Pearls were studied using light and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and Raman spectroscopy. Naturally formed pearls were found in both male and female specimens. Pearls are produced in different shapes, including spherical, ellipsoidal, buttoned, and bumpy, ranging in size from 200 µm to 1.9 mm. The internal microstructure is composed of irregular polygonal tablets, about 0.40 to 0.55 μm in thickness. EDX analysis showed that pearls are composed of calcium carbonate. FTIR and Raman spectra recorded several peaks attributable to the aragonite in pearls of this species, as has been shown in other mollusks. In addition to these results, pearls of different colors are illustrated.
产生珍珠的能力在软体动物门中广泛存在，包括蚌超科的双壳类动物。在此，我们使用从智利巴塔哥尼亚地区的两个湖泊采集的样本，对原产于南美洲南部的淡水蛤形成的天然珍珠进行了鉴定和表征。利用光学显微镜、扫描电子显微镜（SEM）、能量色散X射线光谱仪（EDX）、傅里叶变换红外光谱仪（FTIR）和拉曼光谱仪对珍珠进行了研究。在雄性和雌性样本中均发现了天然形成的珍珠。珍珠呈现出不同的形状，包括球形、椭圆形、纽扣形和凹凸形，大小从200微米到1.9毫米不等。其内部微观结构由厚度约为0.40至0.55微米的不规则多边形薄片组成。EDX分析表明珍珠由碳酸钙组成。FTIR和拉曼光谱记录了该物种珍珠中与文石相关的几个峰，其他软体动物的情况也是如此。除了这些结果，还展示了不同颜色的珍珠。
