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posted by mrpg on Tuesday March 06 2018, @09:33AM   Printer-friendly
from the recipe? dept.

[...] For a long time scientists believed that an animal's venom was consistent over time: once a venomous creature, always a venomous creature. However, through a close study of sea anemones, Dr. Yehu Moran of Hebrew University's Alexander Silberman Institute of Life Science, found that animals change their venom several times over the course of a lifetime, adapting the potency and recipe of their venom to suit changing predators and aquatic environments.

[...] Dr. Moran found that while in the larvae stage, sea anemones produce uniquely potent venom that causes predators to immediately spit them out if swallowed. Later on, when the sea anemones grow big and become predators themselves, their venom adapts to their new lifestyle by producing a different kind of toxin, one best suited to catch small fish and shrimp. Over the course of a lifetime, as the Nematostella's diet changes and they move from one aquatic region to another, they adapt their venom to suit their new needs and environment.

"Until now, venom research focused mainly on toxins produced by adult animals. However, by studying sea anemones from birth to death, we discovered that animals have a much wider toxin arsenal than previously thought. Their venom evolves to best meet threats from predators and to cope with changing aquatic environments," explained Dr. Yehu Moran.

[...] Most fundamentally, Moran's study sheds more light on the basic mechanisms of Darwinism: How do animals adapt to their changing world and ecological habitats? The Nematostella, with its changing venom, provides us yet another clue.


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  • (Score: 1) by cocaine overdose on Tuesday March 06 2018, @12:36PM (1 child)

    Even more precisely: Namastaya doesn't change it's venom recipe as it pleases, but only during different stages of its growth. Like testosterone in a boy.

  • (Score: 2) by darkfeline on Tuesday March 06 2018, @08:09PM

    by darkfeline (1030) on Tuesday March 06 2018, @08:09PM (#648655) Homepage

    I think you missed the part about the venom changing to suit their changing diet and environment?

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