Nacre, commonly known as mother of pearl, forms the inner layer of the shell structure in some groups of gastropod and bivalve molluscs, mostly in the more ancient families such as top snails (Trochidae), and pearl oysters (Pteriidae). Like the other calcareous layers of the shell, the nacre is created by the epithelial cells (formed by the germ layer ectoderm) of the mantle tissue. However, nacre does not seem to represent a modification of other shell types, as it uses a distinct set of proteins.[35]