Characterization of calcium oxalate biominerals in Pereskia species (Cactaceae)

Paula V. Monje, Enrique J. Baran

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

7 Scopus citations

Abstract

Calcium oxalate druses were isolated from the stems and leaves of six Pereskioideae family members and investigated by infrared spectroscopy, showing that in all samples the biomineral was present in the form of whewellite, CaC2O4 · H2O. As Pereskia is thought to represent the "ancestral" condition of the leafless stem-succulent cacti, these results suggest that the biomineralization of calcium oxalate in Cactaceae represents a primitive characteristic of the group and also support a close genetic relationship between Pereskia and Opuntia.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)763-766
Number of pages4
JournalZeitschrift fur Naturforschung - Section C Journal of Biosciences
Volume64
Issue number11-12
DOIs
StatePublished - 2010

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
This work was supported by Universidad Na-cional de La Plata (UNLP) and Consejo Nacion-al de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas de

Keywords

  • Biominerals
  • Infrared spectroscopy
  • Pereskia
  • Whewellite

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology (all)

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