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Article: Scientists compare genes of sea squirts.(Knight Ridder Newspapers)
- Article from:
- Knight Ridder/Tribune News Service
- Article date:
- October 11, 2002
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2002 Knight-Ridder/Tribune News Service. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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WALNUT CREEK, Calif. _ In a bubbling aquarium in a comfortably cluttered lab live a colony of what look strangely like large, olive green garden slugs.
Despite their elementary look, these simple sea-dwelling animals called sea squirts are surprisingly similar to people in at least one important way.
At an early stage of development, sea squirts grow like humans and other animals with spinal cords and backbones. Scientists hope that by studying sea squirt DNA they can learn more about human development and basic evolution.
These tube-like sea creatures are just one example of a revolution in the biological sciences taking places in labs like ...