Jellyfish can heal wounds in minutes. Scientists want their secrets
62 points
by hhs
5 hours ago
| 6 comments
| mbl.edu
| HN
zerobees
1 hour ago
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This is a press release from a marine research organization, so the main implication here isn't that they're doing it because it's in any way relevant to humans. They're doing it because it's a cool thing for a marine research organization to research.

Yes, it's probably not gonna help humans, unless some of your friends are gelatinous blobs with no circulatory or nervous system and with a lifespan measured in months.

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wxw
16 minutes ago
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> The medusa, the free-swimming form most people picture when they hear the term jellyfish, is only one stage of the animal’s life cycle.

> We tend to think of the flower—or the jellyfish—as the organism, but these are actually reproductive units.

I'll never look at jellyfish the same.

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Waterluvian
7 minutes ago
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Wait, so they’re sea jizz?!
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karim79
2 hours ago
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At first glance I imagined this was a magic way to heal a wound by rubbing a jellyfish on it. Skin irritation be damned, this is gonna save lives.

But no. No such joy.

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UltraSane
3 hours ago
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Don't they have the advantage of having very simple tissue?
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packetlost
3 hours ago
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They're not even technically one organism, but colonies of independent but mostly specialized organisms. I'd be willing to bet that has something to do with the articles title
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andsoitis
2 hours ago
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True jellyfish (like moon jellies, box jellyfish)are a single organism, just like you or me. Theres a single genome and one body.

Portuguese man o’ war is not a single organism at all but a siphonophore, a colony of many genetically identical but specialized individual organisms called zooids, all fused together and functionally dependent on each other.

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sophrosyne42
1 hour ago
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Whats the difference between a siphonophore and a single organism? Aren't all the organs of an organism genetically identical, specialized, fused together, and functionally dependent on each other?
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timschmidt
44 minutes ago
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It's a very fuzzy line. But according to The Octopus Lady's video in the other comment, it's because separating them from the other zooids doesn't result in immediate death. They may die later due to lack of ability to swim, or eat, but that is a secondary cause which is considered important.
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timschmidt
1 hour ago
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You're thinking of Siphonophores like the Portugese Man-o-war. The Octopus Lady has a wonderful video on them: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ipDpbYQdFEA
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piusk
2 hours ago
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how does this work, when they just sting
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jagged-chisel
1 hour ago
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Healing their own wounds, not ours.
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14
1 hour ago
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Nothing in the article mentioned stinging I am confused what you are asking ?
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dspnc
2 hours ago
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TL/DR: be made of jelly
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