Scientists have developed a powerful new sun-blocking material derived from natural protective agents that evolved in fish living off Australia’s sunbaked coast.

In laboratory tests, the material was found to be twice as effective at filtering out ultraviolet radiation as traditional sunscreen compounds, said Vincent Bulone, director of the ARC Centre of Excellence in Plant Cell Walls at the University of Adelaide in Australia.

The development, reported recently in the American Chemical Society journal Applied Materials & Interfaces, could lead to new sun creams made of all natural ingredients and to coatings that protect products from degrading in sunlight, such as outdoor furniture and car dashboards, Dr. Bulone said.

“The material theoretically outperforms everything that is available on the market in terms of protection against UV radiations,” said Dr. Bulone, a co-author of the report. “It protects from both UVA and UVB radiations with an absorption capacity higher than the typical products used already in sunscreen creams.”

The research team, including scientists from Sweden, Spain and Australia, used organic compounds called mycosporines that fish species living on Australia’s Great Barrier Reef produce to help protect their eyes and tissues from sun damage. Previous studies identified the UV-absorbing properties of mycosporines. But the latest research managed to set the compounds in combination with chitosan, a polymer derived from crustacean shells and insects.