You may have seen the freshwater golden apple snail (Pomacea canaliculata) chilling at the bottom of a fish tank. These little guys are actually one of the world’s most invasive species, and developmental biologist Alice Accorsi sought to understand the key to their survival.
She found that part of their secret is the ability to regenerate body parts, including their eyes. While this power isn’t unique to golden apple snails, their eyes have a lens, cornea and retina like humans’. Moreover, these critters require the same gene people do to grow eyes, which could help scientists locate the molecular switches involved in both human and snail eye growth.
In just a few years, Accorsi, who is an assistant professor of molecular and cellular biology at the University of California, Davis, has propelled these gastropods toward becoming laboratory stand-ins for human eyes — a feat that usually takes much longer.
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