Turritopsis nutricula may be the world’s only “immortal” creature. Jellyfish usually die after propagating but Turritopsis reverts to a sexually immature stage after reaching adulthood and is capable of rejuvenating itself.
The 4-5mm diameter creature, technically known as a hydrozoan, is the only known animal that is capable of reverting to its juvenile polyp state. Theoretically, this cycle can repeat indefinitely, rendering it potentially immortal.
Times (thanks Isabelle)
..the Doctor Who of the maritime world…
If immortality requires me to become a teenager again, I’m out.
welcome! i feel really chuffed now
-Isabelle
is that what killed steve irwin!
Can I be one of those, please?
I, for one, welcome our Turritopsis nutricula overlords.
Plunging it into the belly of a volcano might render your theory redundant. Or if you welded it to a nuclear bomb. Saying that though the cold virus stuck to a shiny surface inside a moon probe after a technician sneezed on it, survived for three months on the surface of the moon. It also mutated slightly. They found it when the probe was returned to earth. You just cant kill that shit.
‘Turritopsis reverts to a sexually immature stage after reaching adulthood ‘: It’s as if someone has written my biography but got my name wrong!
Yeah, but I bet they don’t get much done in that time. Hang around, eat, breed, regenerate.
Although saying that, that’s one more thing than a lot of people I know..
Oh, I wonder what face cream will make use of the little blighters.
Ah, that is my genes .. I know understand why I feel all of a sudden so sexually immature ..
In a way we all do .. well .. not the we as we see to ourselves … but we reproduce ourselves as well ..
in another way …the rib was immmortal apparently .. hm .. nah, the human with the rib .. nah .. whatever it was .. way back .. reproduced/reproduces itself in many shapes and forms ..
Maybe this little jelly fish is no longer really the jelly fish it was when finally becoming adult .. I think it will be hell if you dont loose memory … well, if you have one that is.
Yeah, if being immortal asked me to be a juvenile again……dearie me. It’s bad enough once, but to repeat the cycle over & over……heaven forbid!
LC x
Give every Catholic priest one of these to play with. It will save the Vatican billions.
They can’t be doing it very effectively or very often, otherwise the seas would be overflowing with them.
Let’s hope that they don’t start doing it really well or we will have a slight problem – exponential growth of jellyfish populations being the least expected of all apocalyptic scenarios.
Maybe a Hollywood film?
(Obviously they would be predated and therefore kept in check, but allow a dreamer to dream…)
Has there been information proving or disproving the immortality of lobsters? Very little that I’ve been able to find has suggested that lobsters are also immortal and continuously grow and molt as long as they aren’t killed by unnatural causes.
And the Jellyfish doesn’t even realize he’s alive……..
It’s not the only immortal creature! Hydras and bacterial colonies are also biologically immortal.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biological_immortality
These things are going to rule the world in a few million years. I agree with TheMindFantastic, we should get in their corner before it kicks off
Organic Perpetual Motion Machine