Our results, showing that it can be predicted, therefore completely change the way we think about fission." "In fact, the last in-depth study of fission came to the conclusion that where fission occurs is unpredictable. "Prior to our work, nobody knew where and how planarians divide," said Collins. To understand where and how fission occurs in the planarian species Dugesia japonica, the researchers employed a mix of time-lapse video recordings, sensitive traction measurements, statistical analysis of hundreds of divisions and mathematical modelling.Įva-Maria Collins, an associate professor in the Department of Physics and Section of Cell and Developmental Biology, and her colleagues were able to predict where planarian fission occurs based on its anatomy as well as explain how the process happens using a relatively simple mechanical model. Because fission does not happen frequently - approximately once a month for certain species - continuous video recordings are required to capture planarians in the act to study the details of its regeneration. They do not like to be watched during fission, which primarily happens in the dark and halts at the slightest disturbance. Planarians are notoriously difficult to study. But now, a team of University of California San Diego scientists provides a new biomechanical explanation in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS). When, where and how this process unfolds has remained a puzzle for centuries due to the difficulty of studying fission.
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