Alternative moth-eye nanostructures: antireflective properties and composition of dimpled corneal nanocoatings in silk-moth ancestors
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Date
2017
Publication Type
Journal Article
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yes
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Abstract
Moth-eye nanostructures are a well-known example of biological antireflective surfaces formed by pseudoregular arrays of nipples and are often used as a template for biomimetic materials. Here, we provide morphological characterization of corneal nanostructures of moths from the Bombycidae family, including strains of domesticated Bombyx mori silk-moth, its wild ancestor Bombyx mandarina, and a more distantly related Apatelodes torrefacta. We find high diversification of the nanostructures and strong antireflective properties they provide. Curiously, the nano-dimple pattern of B. mandarina is found to reduce reflectance as efficiently as the nanopillars of A. torrefacta. Access to genome sequence of Bombyx further permitted us to pinpoint corneal proteins, likely contributing to formation of the antireflective nanocoatings. These findings open the door to bioengineering of nanostructures with novel properties, as well as invite industry to expand traditional moth-eye nanocoatings with the alternative ones described here.
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published
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Journal / series
Volume
15
Pages / Article No.
61
Publisher
BioMed Central
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Subject
Moth-eye structures; Biomimetic materials; Antireflective nanocoatings; Silkmoth
Organisational unit
03918 - Fiebig, Manfred / Fiebig, Manfred