Creation of a peptide database of corneous beta-proteins of marine turtles for the identification of tortoiseshell: archaeological combs as case study.

ABSTRACT: Tortoiseshell is a proteinaceous material derived from the scutes of marine turtles, and was shaped into an abundance of objects, especially luxurious items, at its peak in the seventeenth and eighteenth century. It has continued to be used even after the advent of plastics and remains one of the main causes of illegal poaching of marine turtles, in particular the hawksbill turtle Eretmochelys imbricata. Tortoiseshell is made of structural proteins, of which the most abundant are known as β-keratins, or 'corneous beta-proteins' (CBPs), a family of short proteins containing a central structure in β-sheets. There are, however, few CBP sequences of marine turtles in protein databases. The scutes of the five main species of marine turtles (Chelonia mydas, Caretta caretta, Eret

SUBMITTER: Solazzo C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8074788 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature