What products contain diatoms?
Diatoms are among the most important and prolific microscopic sea organisms and serve directly or indirectly as food for many animals. Diatomaceous earth, a substance composed of fossil diatoms, is used in filters, insulation, abrasives, paints, and varnishes and as a base in dynamite.
Where can I find diatoms?
Diatoms live in water, or even in moist habitats or soils. Some diatoms live as free-floating cells in the plankton of ponds, lakes and oceans.
Are diatoms used in food products?
There are two main types of diatomaceous earth: food grade, which is suitable for consumption, and filter grade, which is inedible but has many industrial uses. The diatoms in diatomaceous earth are largely made up of a chemical compound called silica.
What commercial products are diatoms used for?
Diatoms have cell walls called frustules that contain opaline silica and fine pores. The tiny pores in the frustules make them a useful filtering material for a wide range of industrial products, including beer and jet fuel.
What human disease is caused by diatoms?
The neurotoxin domoic acid (DA) is produced by diatoms in the genus Pseudo-nitzschia and has a high affinity for glutamate receptors. In humans, it causes loss of short-term memory and is called amnesic shellfish poisoning.
What are round diatoms called?
Diatoms have two distinct shapes: a few (centric diatoms) are radially symmetric, while most (pennate diatoms) are broadly bilaterally symmetric. A unique feature of diatom anatomy is that they are surrounded by a cell wall made of silica (hydrated silicon dioxide), called a frustule.
What are the two shells of a diatom called?
Literally, they live in “glass houses.” The shell of a diatom is composed of two differently sized sections, which can be either wedge-shaped or round. The larger, upper section is known as the epitheca and overlaps the smaller, lower section (the hypotheca ).