10 Interesting Things The Big Bang Theory Taught Us About Science

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5. Cell Biology - Immortality Exists In The Animal Kingdom

In Season 6, Episode 20 of the Big Bang Theory titled the Tenure Turbulence, Leonard tells us that immortality may indeed exist. He states he's been reading up on jellyfish which essentially lives forever by regressing to its asexual state. Why this may sound completely whacky to many or not make a lot of sense it is, in actuality, quite true. The scientific name for this jellyfish is Turritopsis dohrnii. It accomplishes this "immortal" feat through a process called transdifferentiation. In order to understand the process one must have a general knowledge of cellular biology. Transdifferentiation occurs when a mature cell transforms into another cell without undergoing a pluripotent stage. Pluripotency refers to a stem cell with the potential to become any of the three existing germ layers including the endoderm, mesoderm, and ectoderm. This means that through transdifferentiation a cell can essentially revert to a previous state without having to start from the beginning. The jellyfish simply regresses to an immature cell state which allows the cells to keep from dying. While this jellyfish may indeed hold the secret to immortality it by no means is guaranteed to live forever. Turritopsis dohrnii falls prey to both disease and aquatic predators. As far as self-preservation goes the jellyfish has been studied only briefly so the no specimen's exact age has ever been recorded. While the potential for immortality exists we have yet to prove it, and with the continuing controversy surrounding stem cells it may be quite a while before we unlock such secrets.