No, the only immortal being on the planet is not a vampire. It doesn’t even have a backbone, much less fangs.
The turrtopsis nutricula species of jellyfish are the only creature science has even encountered that do not eventually break down and die. How do they do it? By cycling through their adult phase back into their immature polyp stage and then back again. Imagine, instead of growing old, you grow up, spend a few years being 35, and then grow young again.
Scientists say this ability is totally unique.
The key to this unique death cheating tactic lies in transdifferentiation, which allows one type of cell to transform into a different kind of cell. Some animals use a limited form of this process to do things like regenerate organs and limbs (think salamander). Turritopsi nutricula doesn’t just occasionally replace a limb, they replace their whole body over and over again.
Because the jellyfish don’t die, their population is spiking. They used to just be found in the Caribbean, but now they’ve spread to every ocean in the world. ”We are looking at a worldwide silent invasion,” says Dr. Maria Miglietta of the Smithsonian Tropical Marine Institute.
Naturally, scientists are eagerly studying the jelly’s, hoping to discover their secrets and apply them to human medicine. With some doctors hypothesizing that extending the human life-span to 500 years or more may enter the realm of possibility in the next 25 years, an immortal jell fish is sure to play a sizable role in that race for the fountain of youth.
(Photo by Peter Schuchert)
