REVIEW OF THE RESEARCH ON BIOMINERALIZATION

The process of biomineralization means that, in the participation of cells in the organism, inorganic elements precipitate on organic matter in a particular selective precipitation from the environment to form new minerals. The mineral crystallization is regulated by the organic matrix that the organism excretes, and then the organic matrix can induce the inorganic materials to crystallize and grow. The organic matrix within the organism body controls the nucleation, growth and accumulation for mineral crystal, in order to make the biominerals develop in special shape, orientation and alignment and show special functions. Nowadays, the biomineralization attracts the attention of chemistry, physics, biology and material science. This paper reviews the type, procedure and mechanism of biomineralization, as well as the common method and further prospects of the research.