Bioelectric 'Memory' in Planarians Rewrites Regeneration Science

Researchers at Tufts University's Allen Discovery Center have discovered a non-genetic biological memory system that challenges our understanding of how organisms maintain their physical structure. Published in Science Advances in 2022, the study reveals that planarian flatworms use bioelectric signaling patterns—voltage differences across cell membranes—as a separate information network that guides regeneration and body structure independently of DNA. In groundbreaking experiments, researchers created two-headed planarians by temporarily disrupting ion channels. Remarkably, when these worms were cut into pieces, they regenerated as two-headed worms even after the chemical intervention was removed. This demonstrates that pattern memory exists outside the genome in a bioelectric network that functions similarly to a primitive neural network. The discovery has profound implications for regenerative medicine, artificial intelligence, and our philosophical understanding of biological identity, suggesting that what makes us "us" involves multiple information systems beyond just our genes.

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