@mbari_news: Looking at delicate deep-sea drifters reveals adaptations to life under pressure. Deep-sea animals live under crushing amounts of pressure generated by the immense weight of the water above. Comb jellies are a diverse group of gelatinous animals found across a range of marine habitats, from the ocean’s sunlit surface to the abyssal seafloor. A new study published in Science today by scientists at the University of California, San Diego with an interdisciplinary team of researchers, including MBARI marine biologists, has revealed how comb jellies manage to thrive under pressure. For comb jellies, an adaptation in their cellular membranes is key to surviving high pressure. Greasy molecules called lipids that make up membranes have a different shape in deep-sea species than in shallow-water ones. The cone shape of these molecules helps keep the cellular membranes of deep-sea comb jellies dynamic under pressure. These molecules are also abundant in our own nerve cells and their loss is linked to conditions like Alzheimer’s. Studying deep-sea comb jellies could one day help us find ways to restore membrane function in human brains. #MBARI #DeepSea #DeepOcean #fyp #WaitForIt

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Thursday 27 June 2024 22:46:07 GMT