In the exoskeletons of most crustaceans, cuticular sclerotization is followed by the deposition of minerals, namely calcium carbonate [7,17], as an additional hardening factor. Calcium carbonate is deposited either as the crystalline form of calcite, or as stable ACC [7]. ACC is a naturally
unstable form of calcium carbonate, and substantial evidence has shown that in the crustacean exoskeleton, this compound is stabilized through the involvement of proteins and/or peptides [18,19] as well as organic and inorganic molecules and ions [20–23].