Researchers may have just discovered a brand-new shape called the scutoid. The discovery occurred while they were studying epithelial cells, the building blocks of embryos that eventually form the linings of many organs, including the skin.
Now, they have defined these cells as having the scutoid shape, and it could explain why they're able to pack tightly together and form complex, covered structures.
New Geometric Shape Discovered: Here's What It Looks Like
"[The cells] are like pieces of Tente or Lego from which animals are made," said Luis Escudero, a developmental biologist from the University of Seville in Spain and one of the authors of the study, which was published in the Nature Communications journal.
During the development of embryos, their tissues bend as they start forming into organs. Previously, scientists thought they were able to remain tightly packed if they were bottle-shaped or column-shaped, but advanced computer simulations have revealed that a more complex shape is likely.
How did the researchers arrive at such a shape, though? Well, they first used a computer model that predicted which cell shapes would be most efficient in staying in contact with fellow cells in both flat or curved layers. The resulting shape ended up looking slightly similar to a prism, with six sides on one end, five on the other, and a bizarre triangular surface on one of the edges.
This is what it looks like:
After finding the shape, the researchers closely studied fruit fly salivary glands and zebrafish cells via microscopy and computer imaging, and they found out that these cells were indeed shaped like a scutoid. The scientists believe cells that exist in any curved sheet of epithelial cells are scutoid-shaped — even those in humans.
What's In A Name?
Bear in mind that the scutoid is a completely new shape in the field of science and geometry, so when the researchers found it, they were shocked.
"It was such a surprise!" according to Escudero.
Where did the name come from, though? Well, the researchers decided to base it on the scutellum of a beetle since the two look somewhat similar, the most prominent marker of which being the triangular shape at the center of a beetle's outer covering.
It's not every day a new shape is discovered, so systems biologist Javier Buceta, who's credited as a co-author of the study, was grateful for the opportunity to name a new shape.
"It's not going to be the circle or the square, but we have been able to name a new shape," Buceta told Gizmodo.
