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‘When you kill it, it doesn’t die’: the jellyfish that has cracked the secret of immortality

Turritopsis dohrnii has the ability to turn back into a baby jellyfish and grow up all over again

‘When you kill it, it doesn’t die’: the jellyfish that has cracked the secret of immortality

TL;DR

  • The jellyfish species *Turritopsis dohrnii* has a unique ability to reverse its life cycle.
  • When faced with stress, it reverts to a juvenile polyp stage through cellular transdifferentiation.
  • This process allows the jellyfish to potentially live forever, bypassing natural death from aging.
  • These jellyfish, though small, are found in various marine environments worldwide.
  • The concept of immortality in a jellyfish fascinates scientists and humans alike, given the universal human desire to avoid death.