Scientists are finally getting into the rhythm of sea creatures’ lunar cycle (KnowableMag)
lives in shallow waters in a broad range of seas. It has also been lab-bred for more than 70 years, from specimens thought to have been collected near Naples, Italy. The worm integrates both lunar and solar cues into its life cycle and is a model system for studies of chronobiology.The role is a crucial one, because in order to synchronize and spawn on the same night, the creatures need to be able to stay in step with the patterns of the moon on its roughly 29.
The researchers accrued other evidence, too, that L-Cry is an important player in lunar timekeeping, helping to discern sunlight from moonlight. They purified the L-Cry protein and found that it consists of two protein strands bound together, with each half holding a light-absorbing structure known as a flavin. The sensitivity of each flavin to light is very different.
All in all, the situation is akin to having “a highly sensitive ‘low light sensor’ for moonlight detection with a much less sensitive ‘high light sensor’ for sunlight detection,” the authors concludeMany puzzles remain, of course. For example, though presumably the two distinct fates of the L-Cry molecules transmit different biological signals inside the worm, researchers don’t yet know what they are.
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