In the quest for developing solar panels and manufacture biofuel , scientists have come a long path in a relatively short amount of clip . However , elephantine lolly may be able to learn them a thing or two , as they have already perfected the process through millions of years of phylogenesis . A unexampled work has reveal that the iridescent colors help gargantuan buck create a nursery for alga , which go symbiotically with the clams and provide them with food . The research was led by Alison Sweeney of the University of Pennsylvania and the newspaper was published in theJournal of the Royal Society Interface .
" Many mollusks , like calamary , octopuses , snails and cuttlefish have iridescent structures , but almost all practice them for disguise or for signaling to mates , " Sweeney said in apress release . " We knew elephantine clam were n’t doing either of those things , so we wanted to acknowledge what they were using them for . "
jumbo clams , and thus the alga embed within its tissue , can be found in tropical regions where sunlight is abundant . Though it is counterintuitive , overweening photograph to sunlight really cut back the algae ’s ability to photosynthesize to create food . The squad speculate that the iridocytes , which give giant clam their sheen , aided the algae in some mode .
The resolution , it turned out , was the geometrical arrangement of the algal cell and iridocytes . The algae is stacked into pillars , which is not the good way to get sunlight for photosynthesis . However , there is a layer of iridocytes on top , aid in the process . These structures act like a prism , scatter the sunlight as it passes through . reddish and blue light source , which is the most good during photosynthesis , is directed downward and spread widely . This let the light reach deep into the stacked alga and allow for efficient photosynthesis , while forestall the cells from becoming over inundated with sunlight . This allowed the clam to act as a functional greenhouse for the algae .
" We see that , at any vertical stead within the clam tissue , the brightness come in at just about the mellow rate at which these algae can make use of photons most expeditiously , " explained Sweeney . " The entire organization is surmount so the alga absorb Inner Light exactly at the pace where they are happiest . "
To test if the blue and red wavelengths were really that pervasive throughout the clam ’s flesh , the team needed to detect the light . A flat - canted , lite - sensitive probe that had been nonplus straight down was not able to pick up any light dispersed through the iridocytes . However , pocket-sized fiber oculus cables with rounded ends that had been woven into the tissue were able-bodied to plunk up on the scattered light .
" The dollar bill has to make every square inch count when it come to efficiency , " Sweeney concluded . " Likewise , all of our alternatives are very expensive when it comes to surface expanse , so it make sentience to seek to solve that trouble the way phylogeny has . "
Understanding how iridocytes maximise potential for photosynthesis could allow scientist to design solar panels that are also able to dribble the most productive wavelength of luminosity , boosting electric potential . This could also be used in bioreactors that grow algae for biofuel ; if light can be coaxed into penetrate the alga deeply rather than needing to be stirred and motley to spread out exposure to sunlight , the outgrowth could be greatly streamlined .
