The gutless marine worm Olavius algarvensis (IMAGE)
Caption
The little worm that changed the textbook: The gutless marine worm Olavius algarvensis (here lying next to some sand grains) is only about two centimetres long and has become so dependent on its bacterial symbionts for nutrition and waste recycling that it has lost both its digestive and excretory systems. Its white appearance comes from the dense layer of bacterial symbionts beneath its skin, which are packed with PHA, the microbial bioplastic at the center of this study. This inconspicuous worm helped scientists discover that animals can digest microbial bioplastics previously thought to be broken down only by microorganisms.
Credit
Alexander Gruhl / Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology
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