In 2020, a group of scientists at Woods Hole Marine Biological Laboratory used the gene-editing tool CRISPR-Cas9 to disable a gene in the Doryteuthis squid (aka the longfin squid). This milestone comes after years of neuroscience developments derived from this particular underwater creature and its dual nerve fibers, called axons. Research on these axons has provided insight into everything from simple nerve signaling to the complexity of brains, but even more could be in store, including “improved therapies for neurological and genetic disorders in humans,” according to National Geographic. Read more about the extraordinary longfin squid and their unique nerve fibers there.
Image courtesy of Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute