SOFIA PEROZZI

SCIENCE 2
4/22/14
PLANARIA LAB REPORT

PROBLEM: If trisected, which piece of a planarian will regenerate first?

HYPOTHESIS: If trisected, then the anterior will regenerate first.

THEORY:

Planaria are flatworms that have the ability to reproduce sexually or
asexually. Planaria are hermaphrodites, which is defined as having both male
and female gonads. Gonads are sex glands such as the ovaries or testis where
gametes are produced. Planaria reproduce sexually by coming together to
exchange sperm in order to internally fertilize their eggs. They complete this
procedure and release a cocoon or fertilized egg, which hatches later on.

Planaria can reproduce asexually by tail dropping or fragmentation. For
example, when planaria are dissected or trisected, two or three new flatworms
form. Any fragment cut from a flatworm will regenerate itself into an exact
clone that it was originally. Tail dropping is essentially where they tear
themselves into two. When there is a transverse compression directly behind
the pharynx, planaria will reproduce by tail dropping. The pharynx will increase
in size until the two pieces detach. The anterior piece will then regenerate a
new posterior, while the posterior part will restore an anterior piece.

Regeneration in planaria comes from embryonic stem cells called
neoblasts, which are capable of any type of cell replacement. Neoblasts are
used in a planaria for regeneration, reproduction purposes, or for wound
healing. Neoblasts are roughly 30% of the total number of cells and are
scattered throughout planaria. Neoblasts are totipotent which means they have
the potential to turn into any cell in the body. When they purposely dissect
themselves or are cut in pieces, the neoblasts accumulate at the wound. Cells
migrate and then divide in the areas that are needed to regenerate. The
aggregate of the stem cells (neoblasts) and cell division in the location of the
wound starts to grow exponentially and is called the blastema. Planaria have a
keen knowledge of what part it needs to regenerate. This is referred to as the
anterior and posterior polarity. The blastema then begins to differentiate itself
according to the position of where it was cut and determines which part needs
to be regenerated. The anterior piece will differentiate new cells into
becoming a posterior and vice versa. I suggested in my hypothesis that the
anterior piece would grow first because their head has the ability to sense light
and they need to stay in the shade.

DATA:



CONCLUSION:

In this lab, we trisected a planaria. I hypothesized that the anterior
would regenerate first because the anterior contains the ocelli. Ocelli are of
use to the planaria because they help locate light and therefore help them stay
hydrated by finding shade. My data shows that by day 10, the anterior had
developed first; therefore, making my hypothesis correct. The anterior section
had fully developed and had a small portion of new tissue, which had
pigmentation. The mid section had regenerated an anterior piece and posterior
ghost tissue, which contained pigmentation. However, the planaria was still not
fully developed. This proves that my hypothesis was correct. Although my data
proved my hypothesis to be correct, the 2nd period class and the entire 7th
grade had different data. In 2nd period, 5 out of 12 anterior pieces (41.6%)
regenerated first while 7 out of 12 mid sections (58.3%) were the first to
regenerate. Finally, 0 out of 12 posterior pieces regenerated first. While there
was discrepancy in the data, it showed that growth in the anterior and mid-
section occurred most often. In conclusion, my data proves my hypothesis of
the anterior regenerating first.

ANALYSIS:

In this lab, my data and results were partially accurate. While my
hypothesis was correct, our dissection wasnt perfect. The planaria were to be
trisected in equal parts but it was not easy. An incorrect cut in the planaria
allows one section to regenerate more quickly than the other piece because
they were not trisected equally. My group's planaria was a bit difficult to have
control over because it kept pulling away from the scalpel. This was the main
cause of the unequal incision of my group's planaria. If the cuts had been
equal, I would have gotten reliable data. The data from 2nd period and the 7th
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49
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Anterior Mid-Section Posterior
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2014 Regeneration Data
2nd Period
7th Grade
grade proved my hypothesis to be incorrect. The data collected from 2nd
period and the entire 7th grade showed that the mid section regenerated
before both the anterior and posterior pieces. The data from 2nd period class
and entire 7th grade prove my own data to be invalid due to my group's
incorrect incisions to the planaria. It could be possible that they had larger mid
sections and did not make the equal cuts also. This would cause this section to
not need to regenerate as much tissue also. Overall, it appears that the mid-
section regenerated first. Is it possible that there are more neoblasts in that
area, or that they migrated to those sections first because it is more
important. Without knowing that they were trisected in exactly equal sections
causes our data to be unreliable.

Neoblasts in planaria are similar to stem cells in human beings. Both
cells are not yet specialized in a specific function of the organism. Neoblasts
are undifferentiated cells that are used in a planaria for regeneration,
reproduction purposes, or for wound healing. Neoblasts can give rise to any
type of cell and therefore are considered totipotent. In human beings, other
than right after the egg is fertilized and the cells have divided, but not yet
begun differentiation, are the stem cells totipotent. The next phase, which is
when stem cells begin to differentiate, is when cells become pluripotent in
human beings. Pluripotent cells can become many different types of cells in
the body. Somatic stem cells affect growth, maintenance, and
repair. Similarly, neoblasts in planaria do this as well. When planaria are
trisected, they have to repair and maintain themselves in order to
regenerate. However, one difference in somatic cells is that they are not
found in 30% of our bodies likewise to neoblasts in planaria. After humans are
born, stem cells are mainly found in blood cells, bone marrow, brains, hair
follicles, tissue, livers, and the intestines. Stem cells in adults can only turn
into a subset or certain type of cell where as neoblasts can migrate and turn
into any section of a planaria. Their use is limited as to their location in the
body.

Human embryonic stem cells are created when an egg is fertilized with a
sperm. When scientists use stem cells from a fertilized egg, some people
believe it is the same as killing a baby. However, recent researchers have
figured out how to simulate a patient's own cells to behave like stem cells (IPS
and STAP). For IPS cells, scientists added four genes to create stem or
undifferentiated cells. For STAP cells scientists stressed differentiated cells out
by putting them in an acid to create undifferentiated stem cells. With these
techniques for creating stem cells, we will not have as much of a need to use
stem cells that were made from embryos. The US has limited how many
embryonic stem cells by only using left uses over ones from fertilization clinics.