Surprising Sea Slug Is Half-plant, Half-animal - story with pic

[Kadie]

Surprising Sea Slug Is Half-plant, Half-animal

Clara Moskowitz
LiveScience Staff Writer
livescience.com – Tue Jan 12, 3:40 pm ET

A green sea slug appears to be part animal, part plant. It's the first critter discovered to produce the plant pigment chlorophyll.

The sneaky slugs seem to have stolen the genes that enable this skill from algae that they've eaten. With their contraband genes, the slugs can carry out photosynthesis - the process plants use to convert sunlight into energy.

"They can make their energy-containing molecules without having to eat anything," said Sidney Pierce, a biologist at the University of South Florida in Tampa.

Pierce has been studying the unique creatures, officially called Elysia chlorotica, for about 20 years. He presented his most recent findings Jan. 7 at the annual meeting of the Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology in Seattle. The finding was first reported by Science News.

"This is the first time that multicellar animals have been able to produce chlorophyll," Pierce told LiveScience.

more...
http://news.yahoo.com/s/livescience/20100112/sc_livescience/surprisingseaslugishalfplanthalfanimal




This green slug, which is part animal and part plant, produces its own chlorophyll and so can carry out photosynthesis, turning sunlight into energy, scientists have found. Credit: Nicholas E. Curtis and Ray Martinez

[asdjrocky]

1. It even looks like a leaf.

[madmax]

2. delete

a duh moment :p

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

3. Cool. I think I'd like to be able to photosynthesize.

Although I guess that means I'd have to be green.

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

11. It's not easy being green, you know. n/t

[dysfunctional press]

4. what does it taste like...?

that's the important thing.

[asdjrocky]

6. Chicken.

[Kadie]

7. LOL! n/t

[Historic NY]

10. but its too chewy.

[The Doctor.]

15. Chicken.... and broccoli.

Oh... and SEA SLUG. :eyes:

[dysfunctional press]

18. have you ever eaten sea slug prepared correctly...?

[The Doctor.]

30. Correctly? No.

At least if snail is any indication.

What would be 'correctly' prepared?

[dysfunctional press]

32. i was hoping you could tell me...

but i do LOVE escargot...usually it's saute'ed in butter and garlic.

i like sushi too- as long as it doesn't taste like 'uni' (sea anemone) :puke: it tastes about like how an 80-year old concrete shower room smells.

[KittyWampus]

5. This story has a both a wow factor and a whimsical odd factor. That is pretty amazing

[ddeclue]

8. Its a plantimal!

:rofl:

[Confusious]

12. Kill it before it photoprotosynthizisations!

:sarcasm:

[blondeatlast]

36. Anilant, geez.

:rofl:

[nadinbrzezinski]

9. Oh the potential for a science fiction story

and did I forget to add WOOOOWWWWW!!!!!!!

[comrade snarky]

20. Yeah, but where's the threat from a photosynthesizing slug?

What's it gonna do, block your light?

Maybe if it needs human blood. Hmmmm... <calling syfy channel>

[Jack Rabbit]

31. H. P. Lovecraft beat you to it.

Sorry.

[HughMoran]

13. Weird

Someday humans will use this to absorb energy from the sun ;)

[comrade snarky]

22. We could skip the years of research and bioengineering

And see how it sautes in butter.

[HughMoran]

23. !

:spank:

[Solly Mack]

14. It's a beauty!

[mike_c]

16. interesting-- I believe we have a related species here...

...or maybe even the same beast. It has always been thought that they sequester chloroplasts from the algae they eat, IIRC, not that they produce chlorophyll themselves. Plants need LOTS more than just chlorophyll molecules to photosynthesize, but the whole mechanism is inside the chloroplasts, including the necessary genes. I can't wait to read the paper.

Ah-- I just read it-- they DO need the intact chloroplasts, from algae, in order to photosynthesize. This looks like another case of eukaryote endosymbiosis incorporating organelles into cells.

[Maru Kitteh]

21. Still, pretty cool.

[Hekate]

17. That is very very cool. KnR

[drm604]

19. Very interesting.

We try to categorize nature but there's always something that defies ours categories.

[xchrom]

24. Attention vegetarians: you

Too can start photosynthesizing any minute now.

[comrade snarky]

25. That is the second coolest slug I have ever seen

[eShirl]

37. Slurm!

[intheflow]

26. So going solar is part of evolution?

Cool! B-)

[Greyhound]

27. Way cool. K&R

[MilesColtrane]

28. That green stuff isn't chlorophyl. It's Slurm™.

[JCMach1]

29. All humans will be green some day too...

Once the geneticists figure this trick out.

[AllenVanAllen]

33. Very cool.

Thanks for posting this! :hi:

Not only is the universe stranger than we imagine, it is stranger than we can imagine. ~ Sir Arthur Eddington

[Bucky]

34. If they can just cross breed this slug with bread, it'd be a one course balanced meal

[Odin2005]

35. LOL, Solar-Powered Sea Slug!

[Land Shark]

38. It's just the first time Science has RECOGNIZED chlorophyll in animals who've been so for yrs!