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"Planaria" (dugesia dorotocephala) - What are they, and why do we provide this item for our schools?
This is the most widely studied Turbellarian, a free-living flatworm commonly used in science fair projects. Planaria are also called "cross-eyed worms". They are a group of tiny flatworms belonging to the phylum of Platyhelminthes. They are free-living organisms and widely distributed in all kinds of freshwater habits.
Planaria are small, measuring around 3 to 15 mm, so they are easy to miss. When cut into pieces, each piece has the ability to regenerate into a fully formed worm.
Planaria are one of the organisms chosen for regenerative research due to their unique ability to regenerate from adult stem cells. Thus, planaria are considered to be a model organism for stem cell regeneration studies.
Planarian Nervous System
The main ganglia, or nerve centers, of the nervous system and the major sense organs are generally concentrated at the anterior end. The primitive brain of the flatworm consists of a bilobed mass of tissue with lateral longitudinal nerve cords connected by transverse connectives, thus forming a rather ladderlike structure or grid running the greater length of the organism.
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