Planarians. Medical search. Frequent questions

Though "planarian" is a general term used to describe many types of flatworms, it is most often used in reference to triclads. (oup.com)
Though the planarian nervous system is simple, these flatworms display an immense array of complex behaviors-making planarians an ideal candidate with which scientists can study how the brains of more complex organisms, such as humans, function. (oup.com)
None are more surprising to an unsuspecting gardener than the land planarians (Geoplanidae), a family of predatory flatworms. (baynature.org)
Planarians are organisms that are classified within the phyllum of flatworms , which are flatworms and traditionally within the class Turbellaria. (scienceasker.com)
Free-living planarians can be found in both classes, while parasitic flatworms (Cestoda, Monogenea and Trematoda) are also found in the second. (scienceasker.com)
In planarian flatworms, piRNAs and SMEDWI proteins (SMEDWI = Schmidtea mediterranea PIWI) are both essential for the animals' impressive regenerative ability and for their survival. (uni-bayreuth.de)
Not so for planarian flatworms - remarkable animals that march to their own biological beat in many extraordinary ways. (morgridge.org)
Arrowhead flatworms, also known as planarians , differ significantly from earthworms. (whatsthatbug.com)
Planarians are flatworms with large populations of stem cells capable of dividing to support adult tissue renewal and regeneration. (biomedcentral.com)
Planarian flatworms have come under intense study for their renowned ability to regenerate any missing body part, even as adults. (neurosciencenews.com)
Planarian flatworms grow to double their normal size when scientists inhibit a gene that suppresses growth. (the-scientist.com)

Novel monoclonal antibodies to study tissue regeneration in planarians. (ca.gov)
Planarians are an attractive model organism for studying stem cell-based regeneration due to their ability to replace all of their tissues from a population of adult stem cells. (ca.gov)
Thus, additional, easy-to-use, and widely available monoclonal antibodies would be advantageous to study regeneration in planarians.ResultsWe have created seven monoclonal antibodies by inoculating mice with formaldehyde-fixed cells isolated from dissociated 3-day regeneration blastemas. (ca.gov)
Though the scope of regeneration varies from species to species, many planarians are capable of full regeneration. (oup.com)
Here we report that apoptosis of differentiated cells complements stem cell division during regeneration in the planarian Schmidtea mediterranea . (stowers.org)
Pellettieri J, Fitzgerald P, Watanabe S, Mancuso J, Green DR, Sánchez Alvarado A. Cell death and tissue remodeling in planarian regeneration . (stowers.org)
Planarian has its own version of the Human telomerase (canonical telomerase), and it doesn't stop at any point in its lifetime, and this allows the stem cells in the Worm to maintain its telomere during regeneration, and division. (stemgeeks.net)
In work published in the March 15, 2022 issue of the journal Cell Reports , former graduate student Umair Khan and Newmark described intriguing genetic similarities between planarian female germ cells and neoblasts, which are the pluripotent stem cells that drive regeneration. (morgridge.org)
Rink JC, Gurley KA, Elliott SA, Sánchez Alvarado A. Planarian Hh signaling regulates regeneration polarity and links Hh pathway evolution to cilia . (stowers.org)
We demonstrate Akt signaling is essential for organismal physiology and in late stages of the Akt phenotype the reduction in neoblast numbers may impair regeneration in planarians. (biomedcentral.com)
At the same time, planarians have become a useful and important model with which to address basic questions regarding the molecular and cellular basis of regeneration, tissue repair and stem cells in adult organisms. (ehu.eus)
Finally, we present a comprehensive scenario for planarian embryogenesis in an attempt to provide a testable hypothesis that will help to bridge the gap between this divergent mode of development, the ancestral canonical spiral cleavage, and adult planarian regeneration. (ehu.eus)
These observations improve the possibility Debio-1347 an essential early part of planarian regeneration may be the specialty area of neoblasts to create specified instead of na?ve blastema cells. (health-ground.com)
Na?ve versus specific neoblast choices for planarian regeneration Neoblasts react to wounds with stereotypic cell division and migration responses (Bagu?à 1976 Bagu and Saló?à 1984 Wenemoser and Reddien 2010 Guedelhoefer and Debio-1347 Sánchez Alvarado 2012 The neighborhood production of nondividing neoblast progeny cells at wounds leads to the forming of a regenerative outgrowth known as a blastema. (health-ground.com)
A) Intact planarian / (B) Planarian immediately after amputation / (C,D) Regenerated fragments after 5 days of regeneration. (hku.hk)
This collagen plays an important role in regulating how stem cells divide or change in the planarian, crucial to its regenerative capacity and can improve our understanding of human tissue regeneration. (hku.hk)
Since our current understanding of how to regenerate tissues and organs in humans is still limited, deciphering how planarians utilise Collagen IV to keep high potency stem cells in an adult worm, which mammals cannot do, paves the way towards unlocking the mystery and wonders of tissue regeneration in humans. (hku.hk)
To test regeneration rates, 10 land planarians from the first part of the experiment were cut into anterior, medial, and posterior fragments of approximately the same size and placed in 3 separate containers. (nhsjs.com)
However, the roles of rapamycin in the regulation of planarian regeneration remain to be elucidated. (bvsalud.org)

Compare the structure of a planarian (a flatworm) and an earthwor. (pearson.com)
Compare the structure of a planarian (a flatworm) and an earthworm with regard to the following: digestive tract, body cavity, and segmentation. (pearson.com)
So we could say that a planarian is a flatworm or flatworm. (scienceasker.com)
Planarian worm, on the other hand, are free living, invertebrate flatworm, that seem to be immortal as they live for a very long time in the water. (stemgeeks.net)
The Arrowhead Flatworm, also known as the Hammerhead Worm or Bipalium kewense , is a species of land planarian that feeds on various prey found in the soil. (whatsthatbug.com)
Thus, we sought to investigate Akt function during cellular turnover and injury using the planarian flatworm Schmidtea mediterranea . (biomedcentral.com)
A research team of LKS Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong (HKUMed) has identified a role of an extracellular matrix protein (ECM), Collagen IV, in the regulation of pluripotent stem cells in the regenerative flatworm (planarian). (hku.hk)

Amino acid sequence analysis and orthology analysis via OrthoFinder ver.2.3.8 indicated that the identified major vitellaria-specific novel yolk ferritins were conserved in planarians (Tricladida). (bvsalud.org)

이 논문에서는 자웅동체 Schmidtea mediterranea의 게놈 조립 및 분석 결과에 대해 발표하였으며, 플라나리아(Planarian) 염색체 1번이 성염색체로 진화하였을 것이라고 발표하였다. (natureasia.com)
We also report results from initial mechanistic studies of apoptosis in planarians, which revealed that a S. mediterranea homolog of the antiapoptotic gene BCL2 is required for cell survival in adult animals. (stowers.org)
Our findings abrogating Smed-Akt with RNA-interference in the planarian Schmidtea mediterranea led to a gradual decrease in stem cell (neoblasts) numbers. (biomedcentral.com)
Recently, we described that the genome of S. mediterranea contains a single Akt ortholog termed Smed-Akt , which affects cell division and impairs planarian locomotion [ 22 ]. (biomedcentral.com)
Our results indicate that the microbiome of the invertebrate Schmidtea mediterranea, a freshwater planarian, is affected by AgNP exposure at the tested 10 µg/ml concentration. (bvsalud.org)

Planarians possess the incredible capability to regenerate cells that are damaged or removed. (oup.com)
This means that if you chop up a planarian into several pieces-the current record is 279 sections-each piece can regenerate into a full grown worm, assuming that this piece of the worm is placed in an environment with adequate nourishment. (oup.com)
Planarians fascinate researchers due to their the virtually unlimited capacity to regenerate missing tissue from any part of the body. (morgridge.org)
Planarians can regenerate their whole. (the-scientist.com)
Planarians can regenerate all missing tissue within one week of amputation, including a brain, eye spots and pharynx (feeding tube). (hku.hk)
The planarian uses its extensive supply of stem cells of high potency, conserved around 30% in adult worm, to regenerate any missing tissue, including even an entire brain after decapitation. (hku.hk)
The freshwater planarian Dugesia japonica has a powerful regenerative capability and can regenerate a new individual including a complete central nervous system in one week. (bvsalud.org)

Planarian Smed454 Transcriptome Browser: 333 bp from F6AJIXP02FPWO6:1. (ub.edu)

the wandering broadhead planarian Bipalium adventitium , native to Asia, and the multi-lined hammerhead worm, Diversibipalium multilineatum , native to Japan - sport high-contrast stripes and wide, shovel-shaped heads reminiscent of hammerhead sharks. (baynature.org)
Home 2021 Issue Determining the Ecological Impacts of the Invasive Land Planarian Bipalium kewense: An. (nhsjs.com)
The purpose of this investigation was to determine the potential threat posed by the understudied invasive land planarian Bipalium kewense to North Carolinian ecosystems. (nhsjs.com)
Bipalium kewense (aka the hammerhead worm) is an invasive and predatory land planarian that has the potential to significantly alter native ecosystems in North Carolina (Choate & Dunn, 1998). (nhsjs.com)
In a French study regarding invasive land planarians, researchers recorded a total of 36 sightings of Bipalium kewense in mainland France as well as French territories overseas (Justine, et al. (nhsjs.com)

It was hypothesized that the land planarian B. kewense will significantly impact North Carolina ecosystems because of its reproductive capabilities and its voracious predatory habits. (nhsjs.com)
It is possible that the presence and expansion of the invasive land planarian B. kewense could deplete earthworm populations and affect the overall health of soil ecosystems. (nhsjs.com)

However, planarians also became a great model organism for scientists to use. (oup.com)
What type of organism is the planarian? (scienceasker.com)

Among the accessory structures of the reproductive system of planarians, one usually found in freshwater and marine species is the bursa copulatrix, which has the function to store sperm after mating. (wikipedia.org)
Planarians are an ancient species. (oup.com)
So far, at least a dozen species of non-native land planarians from around the world have been identified in the Bay Area. (baynature.org)
Land planarian researcher Leigh Winsor, an adjunct senior research fellow of zoology and ecology at the College of Science and Engineering at James Cook University in Australia, conveniently divides non-native species of land planarians into those that just visit and those that cause problems. (baynature.org)
The wide dispersion of the species and its reported local abundance, combined with the predatory character of the species, make O. nungara a potential threat to the biodiversity and ecology of the native soil fauna in Europe, and probably the most threatening species of all invasive land planarians present in Europe. (peerj.com)
Several land planarians have been reported as invasive alien species in Europe ( Table 1 ). (peerj.com)

Its appearance is foliaceous, that is, flattened and widened, in the form of an oval or lanceolate leaf, although some, such as the hammerhead planarian, have particular structures. (scienceasker.com)

A knockdown of SMEDWI proteins disrupts the specification of the planarian germline and impairs stem cell differentiation, resulting in lethal phenotypes. (uni-bayreuth.de)
To that end, we established an immunoprecipitation protocol that can be applied to all planarian SMEDWI proteins. (uni-bayreuth.de)
however, these proteins are essential for planarian ciliogenesis. (stowers.org)
The current study identified major vitellaria-specific proteins in a freshwater planarian, Dugesia ryukyuensis, using peptide mass fingerprinting (PMF) and expression analyses. (bvsalud.org)

The earth is filled with many types of worms, and the term "planarian" can represent a variety of worms within this diverse bunch of organisms. (oup.com)

In the present study, we tested the hypothesis that abrupt discontinuation of methamphetamine would also cause withdrawal-like behavior in planarians and that the withdrawal-like behavior would be prevented by nociceptin, which has been shown to modulate the effects of methamphetamine in mammals. (sri.com)
We observed a concentration-related reduction of locomotor behavior when planarians exposed to methamphetamine (0.1-100 μM) were tested in drug-free water. (sri.com)
The withdrawal-like behavior was abolished when methamphetamine (10 μM)-exposed planarians were placed into water containing nociceptin (10 μM) or when planarians co-exposed to methamphetamine (10 μM) and nociceptin (10 μM) were placed into drug-free water. (sri.com)
Planarians did not display a change in locomotor behavior during exposure to nociceptin (10 μM) or JTC-801 (1 μM) by themselves. (sri.com)
These results reveal a functional interaction between nociceptin and methamphetamine in planarians and provide evidence that nociceptin blocks methamphetamine-induced withdrawal-like behavior in planarians through a JTC-801-sensitive mechanism. (sri.com)

The Bay Area is home to native freshwater planarians - of high school biology fame and beyond - but no native land planarians. (baynature.org)
The freshwater planarian mostly lives in the upper reaches of springs and rivers. (bvsalud.org)

Planarians contain an abundant and accessible population of somatic adult stem cells called neoblasts [ 18 - 21 ]. (biomedcentral.com)
The neoblasts are the only dividing cells in planarians and constantly proliferate to repair tissues and support systemic cellular turnover [ 21 ]. (biomedcentral.com)

With attention-getting colors and flashy patterns of stripes and spots, it's immediately clear that these non-native land planarians are no common earthworms. (baynature.org)

Locomotion in planarians, in general, can occur in several ways. (scienceasker.com)
The reduced neoblast numbers largely affected the maintenance of adult tissues including the nervous and excretory systems and ciliated structures in the ventral epithelia, which impaired planarian locomotion. (biomedcentral.com)

These antibodies have the potential to be used to better understand planarian biology and to characterize phenotypes following RNAi experiments. (ca.gov)
Schistosomes are a direct descendant of planarians, so the fundamental biology gleaned from planarian work may be directly relevant to fighting this tropical disease. (morgridge.org)
Thus, Akt signaling regulates neoblast biology and mediates in the distribution of injury-mediated cell death during tissue repair in planarians. (biomedcentral.com)
E.G. Schad, C.P. Petersen, "STRIPAK limits stem cell differentiation of a WNT signaling center to control planarian axis scaling," Current Biology , doi:10.1016/j.cub.2019.11.068, 2020. (the-scientist.com)

Yet another land planarian, Microplana scharffi , a native of Europe, looks like a length of pink intestine with a tiny gray head. (baynature.org)

In taxonomic terms, planarians belong to a large class of organisms called Vermes, the Latin term for "worm. (oup.com)
Even the isolated tip of a tail from a planarian can develop into a full grown worm that possesses a brain and central nervous system. (oup.com)
But I start to wonder why Planarian worm seem to defy aging and humans cannot defy aging. (stemgeeks.net)
Why humans aren't living forever, but Planarian Worm Does? (stemgeeks.net)
In addition, scientists have cut up planarians into several pieces and found that each piece will grow into its very own worm, complete and intact. (listverse.com)

Some planarians (such as the genera Planaria, Artioposthia, Arthurdendyus, Coleocephalus and Newzealandia) have a series of finger-like projections, called adenodactyls, near the male and female atria. (wikipedia.org)

The latter cell death response can be induced in uninjured organs, occurs in the absence of planarian stem cells, and can also be triggered by prolonged starvation. (stowers.org)

However, there are few antibodies available to visualize protein expression, which would greatly enhance analysis of RNAi experiments as well as allow further characterization of planarian cell populations using immunocytochemistry and other immunological techniques. (ca.gov)

Our finding of an extracellular matrix protein as part of the environment in which planarians can keep stem cells is an important step, with the hope that we can mimic this in humans to rebuild missing tissues. (hku.hk)

The molecular toolkit for planarian research includes the ability to visualize gene expression via whole animal in situ hybridizations. (ca.gov)
The molecular toolkit for planarian studies currently includes the ability to study gene function using RNA interference (RNAi) and observe gene expression via in situ hybridizations. (ca.gov)

A group of yolk glands also connects to these ducts, as planarians are neoophorans and thus yolk is not located inside the eggs. (wikipedia.org)

We characterize the Hh pathway in planarians. (stowers.org)

A single (5 hr) exposure to this same pattern following several days of exposure to a very complex patterned field in darkness dissolved the planarian and was associated with an expansion of their volume. (laurentian.ca)
To answer the question, 'Do planarians prefer darkness or light? (teachervision.com)

But like other invertebrates, it's hard for planarians to fossilize because their bodies lack hard bones. (oup.com)

The slideshow below highlights fun facts about planarians from Oné Pagán's book, The First Brain: The Neuroscience of Planarians , and provides a glimpse of why scientists like Pagán study these fascinating creatures. (oup.com)
Planarians are not only test subjects for scientists to study. (oup.com)
The purpose of this study was to analyse some effects of three different maintenance conditions of planarians in the laboratory. (bvsalud.org)
This study by researchers of the School of Biomedical Sciences, HKUMed has uncovered a means by which Collagen IV, a key building block of the niche of planarian stem cells, is involved in controlling how these stem cells are used in regenerating missing tissues. (hku.hk)
This study shows that the removal of Collagen IV in planarians will cause the stem cells to divide much faster, but lose their ability to become cells of other tissue types. (hku.hk)
The planarian in this study can do just that, a feat enabled by the ability to keep many stem cells as an adult, and to use them in the regenerative process. (hku.hk)

How planarians can keep so many stem cells remains a mystery, and has fascinated biologists for over a century. (hku.hk)
However, this causes the stem cells to continue proliferating, and they are unable to turn into other cell types to repair or maintain planarian tissues. (hku.hk)
The planarian can become a new planarian after being cut into several parts, its ability to keep many stem cells and use them in the regenerative process inspired our research. (hku.hk)

Planarians have few external characteristics: in the ventral part they have the mouth and in the dorsal part they have eyes that are simple ocelli that only receive light and do not process images. (scienceasker.com)

The planarian ortholog Smed-Akt is molecularly conserved providing unique opportunities to analyze the function of Akt during cellular turnover and repair of adult tissues. (biomedcentral.com)

The reproductive system of planarians is broadly similar among different families, although the associated structures can vary in complexity. (wikipedia.org)

For example, there are animals, including some planarians, that don't even need genetic contribution from sperm - the eggs themselves contain all the information to make a new animal. (morgridge.org)

As we said, the planarians are free-living and there are more marine than sweet. (scienceasker.com)

Planarians display a concentration-related reduction in locomotor activity when amphetamine, cocaine, cannabinoid, or benzodiazepine exposure is abruptly discontinued. (sri.com)

Anatomy2

Organisms3

Chemicals and Drugs2

Analytical, Diagnostic and Therapeutic Techniques and Equipment1

Phenomena and Processes5

Flatworms11

Regeneration19

Flatworm7

Tricladida1

Mediterranea5

Regenerate7

Smed454 Transcriptome Browser1

Bipalium5

Kewense2

Organism2

Species6

Hammerhead1

Proteins4

Worms1

Behavior5

Freshwater2

Neoblasts2

Earthworms1

Locomotion2

Biology4

Microplana1

Worm5

Arthurdendyus1

Starvation1

Populations1

Humans1

Gene2

Yolk1

Characterize1

Darkness2

Invertebrates1

Study6

Cells3

Ventral1

Tissues1

Structures1

Sperm1

Marine1

Exposure1