![]() ![]() Collagen fibrils in aboral body wall were found to exhibit variable degrees of alignment, with high levels of alignment probably corresponding to regions where collagenous tissue is under tension. Scanning synchrotron small-angle X-ray diffraction (SAXD) scans of the starfish aboral body wall and ambulacrum were used to study the collagenous tissue component at the fibrillar level. Furthermore, analysis of the anatomical organisation of the ossicles indicates how changes in body shape may be achieved by local contraction/relaxation of interossicular muscles. The 3D architecture of the calcareous endoskeleton was visualised for the first time using X-ray microtomography, revealing the shapes and interactions of different ossicle types. The collagenous tissue surrounding the ossicle network contains collagen fibres that form loop-shaped straps that wrap around calcite struts near to the surface of ossicles. The muscle system comprises interossicular muscles as well as muscle strands that connect ossicles with the circular muscle layer of the coelomic lining. The structure and organisation of muscular and collagenous components of the body wall were analysed using trichrome staining. Using the common European starfish Asterias rubens as an experimental animal, here we have employed a variety of techniques to gain new insights into the structure of the starfish body wall. The body wall of starfish is composed of magnesium calcite ossicles connected by collagenous tissue and muscles and it exhibits remarkable variability in stiffness, which is attributed to the mechanical mutability of the collagenous component. ![]()
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