Although mammals do not produce chitin, they have two functional chitinases (Chitotriosidase - CHIT1 and acidic mammalian chitinase - AMCase) as well as chitinase-like proteins (such as YKL-40) that have high sequence similarity but lack chitinase activity.
The researchers' improvements include using electrospun Shrimp shell Chitin mats that are more effective at absorbing uranium when compared to the prior record setting Japanese method of using plastic amidoxime nets.