Coral polyps and their symbionts (IMAGE)

Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology (OIST) Graduate University

Coral polyps and their symbionts

Caption

Corals are the one of the simplest animals, with only two layers of cells (called germ layers) forming in early embryonic development - an inner layer, the endoderm, and an outer layer, the ectoderm. Each germ cell layer ultimately develops into different types of cells, including digestive cells, muscle-like cells, nerve-like cells and stinging cells (cnidocytes) but how each cell type forms during development still requires investigation.

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OIST

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