THE AMERICA ONE NEWS
Jul 3, 2025  |  
0
 | Remer,MN
Sponsor:  QWIKET 
Sponsor:  QWIKET 
Sponsor:  QWIKET: Elevate your fantasy game! Interactive Sports Knowledge.
Sponsor:  QWIKET: Elevate your fantasy game! Interactive Sports Knowledge and Reasoning Support for Fantasy Sports and Betting Enthusiasts.
back  
topic


NextImg:How sea slugs give themselves superpowers
Science & technology | Kleptoplasty

How sea slugs give themselves superpowers

Their slimy shenanigans might have applications for humans, too

|3 min read

SOME SEA slugs are kleptomaniacs. Elysia crispata, a species of these marine molluscs found in the western Atlantic and the Caribbean, is among the most notorious. When the slugs eat algae, their bodies pinch bits of the algae’s cells, known as chloroplasts, that enable photosynthesis. These are put to good use, giving the slugs their verdant hue which, along with their frilly back, earned them the moniker “lettuce slug” (see picture). They also continue to function inside the slug for about a year, providing them with photosynthetic energy. Scientists have known about this process, termed kleptoplasty, for decades. But how the heist was pulled off remained a mystery.

A plant using photosynthesis to create new proteins.

Synthetic proteins are being built with the help of AI models

They could treat diseases, test drugs and boost crop yields

A pen made of a DNA strand.

A new project aims to synthesise a human chromosome

The tools developed along the way could revolutionise medicine


A head with speech bubbles coming out of it.

Is being bilingual good for your brain?

Perhaps. Learning languages offers other, more concrete benefits


Distrust in public-health institutions is not just an American problem

Across the rich world politics is driving scepticism 

Scientists have created healthy, fertile mice with two fathers

Bipaternal human children, though, are still far away

Killer whales appear to craft their own tools

One group uses kelp stalks as exfoliating brushes