everywhere ( pycnogenides) – arachnid marine species commonly referred to as “sea spiders” – have the ability to regenerate part of their body, not just limbs, according to a new study published today.

“No one expected this,” said the Gerhard Salts from the University Humboldt Berlin, one of the principal authors of the study published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. “We were the first to prove that this is possible,” he emphasizes.

It is known that in the case of amputation, some arthropods (for example, centipedes, spiders, etc.) are able to regenerate their limbs.

In experiments carried out in everywhere, researchers have found that they are able to regenerate additional body parts. For the purposes of the study, scientists removed various limbs and tail segments from 23 juveniles and adults. omnipods.

Although regeneration of the excised part was not observed in adults, some of them remained alive after two years. In contrast, the younger ones showed “complete or near complete” regeneration of removed parts, including muscles and genitals.

In the long run, 90% of them survived. omnipods subjected to these experiments, the study reports.

According to Gerhard Salts, the results of the study open up new horizons in scientific research. “Many different species can be tested,” he says, to compare regeneration mechanisms, expressing the hope that these mechanisms can lead to the development of treatments for amputees.

^{Source: APE-MEB, AFP.}