Paleontology

1979 Edition

Chitin

  • Paul Tasch
Reference work entry
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/3-540-31078-9_31
How to cite
Chitin, a complex polysaccharide, is one of the chief supporting tissues that keep animal cellular structures intact. It is a polymer, forming long, several-hundred-unit molecular chains ( Fig. 1a), which may range in length from 0.1-1.0 μm. In purified form, chitin consists of highly ordered molecular chains, “micelles,” which have a diameter of 0.01-0.03 μm. A crystal lattice is formed by precise arrangement of chitin chains in any given micelle. Chitin fibrils, which can be observed by plain light microscopy, show subdivision into smaller micelle fibrils when scanned by the electron microscope.
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Cross references

  1. Anthropoda. Vol. IVA: Chitin and Chitinous Cuticles.

Copyright information

© Dowden, Hutchinson & Ross, Inc. 1979

Authors and Affiliations

  • Paul Tasch

There are no affiliations available