ABSTRACT
Diatoms are single-celled microalgae that make cell walls of biogenic silica called frustules that possess pore arrays ordered at both the nano- and microscale. Two genera of centric diatoms within order Thalassiosirales extrude nanofibers composed of β-chitin through specialized pores lining the rim of the frustule. This chapter describes the biosynthetic and cellular processes of β-chitin nanofiber formation, and overviews the biomedical and advanced material applications of this novel marine biopolymer.
