'Scutoid' is a new geometric shape that looks like a 'twisted prism'

There's been an exciting, new development in the action-packed world of geometric shapes.

Researchers from the the University of Seville and Seville Institute of Biomedicine have discovered a new shape that's been dubbed the "scutoid." And what a wonderful little discovery it is.

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Scutoid is the shape adopted by epithelial cells -- the cells that line the inside and outside of your body, helping to define its shape -- to allow tissue to fold and curve.

"The epithelial cells are the 'construction blocks' with which an organism is formed," said University of Seville faculty member Luisma Escudero in a press release announcing the discovery. "They are like pieces of Tente or Lego from which animals are made."

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As an organism grows into a more complex being, epithelial cells "start moving and joining together." This process makes whatever surface they're helping to form more stable.

Meet the scutoid, a newly discovered geometric shape. Credit: university of seville

It had previously been believed that epithelial cells were "prism-shaped" or "truncated pyramids." But researchers at the University of Seville discovered that their form is more complex than that. The press release notes that they could be best described as "twisted prisms."

While it's cool and vaguely funny to talk about this news of there being a new shape on the block, the scutoid revelation could help aid future discoveries. As scientists gain a better understanding of how organs are formed during development, they can potentially use that information to help come up with new disease treatments.

The University of Seville researchers already have a plan in place for their next steps. They want "to find the molecules that cause the cells to adopt the escutoide shape. So, in the medium term, we will be able to begin to try to apply this knowledge to the creation of artificial tissue and organs in the laboratory, a great challenge for biology and biomedicine."

Note that this full study just published this past week in the journal Nature Communications. You can read it here.

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