Understanding non-brain animals knows how to sneeze like a human

Recent research by Canadian scientists shows, spongy-spotted animals "sneeze" like humans.

Sponges are a special animal, they live in freshwater and saltwater environments. More specifically, sponges have no brain, nor do they have eyes, ears, tentacles, no heart, digestive system, nervous system .

However, on the body of the sponge there is a central cavity with large holes - this is the osculum (exhaust system) that helps them filter the good compounds and release the toxins out.

In addition, scientists found that there are many cilia in the osculum system , similar to humans with cilia in the human nose. In humans, when we breathe, the sensors in the nose that detect strange objects will signal to the brain.

At this time, the nerve center controls all the contraction muscles, from the esophagus to the sphincter, of course including the eyelid muscles, creating a "sneeze" to get rid of foreign objects. .

Sponges images during the study

Similarly, the cilia in the exhaust system when detected strange will send signals to the sponge body to create a mechanism to expel foreign objects. Researcher Danielle Ludeman of the University of Alberta (Canada) said, "We are quite surprised to see how the sponges respond to the environment, sometimes they create a small vibration - like they are sneezing. It's a bit ".

Gert Wörheide, a sponge expert at Ludwig-Maximilians University in Munich, Germany, said: "This study shows that the structure of sponges is not as simple as we often think. Research shows , cilia of sponges is used as a sensory organ, which will help us better understand the sensory system in this aquatic species in the history of species evolution. "