OMG science
fromWIRED
4 days agoA 'Golden Orb' on the Ocean Floor Came From a Mysterious Animal
Golden orb material matches Relicanthus daphneae mitochondrial DNA, indicating it is a rare anemone cuticle rather than an egg or biofilm.
The animals do, however, have neuronsnerve cells that appear interconnected throughout their body. And now a new study shows that how these animals sleep is surprisingly similar to humans, suggesting that sleep may have evolved before even the most primitive brains. The findings, published on Tuesday in Nature Communications, also help answer one of science's prevailing mysteries: Why do animals sleep?
Neither jellyfish nor sea anemones have brains. But these animals sleep in ways strikingly similar to humans, according to a study published today in Nature Communications. The findings bolster a theory that sleep evolved, at least in part, to protect the DNA in individual nerve cells, helping to repair damage that builds up while animals are awake.