Flora & Fauna / The god among Animals

In Aztec mythology, Xolotl was the god of fire and lightning. The legend of the five suns is where it all began. the dawning of the fifth sun represents the era in which humans were created, and this is still the era in which we currently live.

 According to myth, the sun was created by the gods, but the sun will not move across the sky without nourishment from the sacrificial blood of an intelligent life. The gods themselves were the first to be sacrificed to this sun, an example of the tradition that humans should follow. 

The deity Xolotl did not want to be sacrificed, so he changed his form into a corn plant, then an agave plant, and finally, the axolotl. However, he was found by his brother Quetzalcoatl, who spared his life, but punished him by cursing him to live in darkness, forever. This is the axolotl we see today.

The biology of Axolotls

At around 23 centimeters in length and varying in color, the axolotl is a type of salamander, but beyond their spiritual bonds, they are unlike all others. They spend their entire lives in the water and permanently living in their juvenile form, an everlasting tadpole.

Aside from its ability to defy age, the axolotl is best known for its ability to regenerate almost every part of its body. From missing limbs, its tail, eyes and even part of its brain, to our biggest surprise. 

Its unique physiology holds the answers to so many unsolved problems related to the loss of body parts. Perhaps we could harness its paradoxical abilities and use it for our health.

Forever young

Axolotls are largely neotenic, meaning they retain most of their larval characteristics into adulthood. They never undergo metamorphosis, which explains their permanent aquatic habitation. They never venture onto land like most salamanders, too. 

When some axolotls were shipped from Mexico to a well-known scientist, Augusts Dumeril, in the 1860s, he was certain that the specimens presented to him were in the juvenile stage. 

After a few months passed, his perspective changed as the salamanders began to multiply. This was unexpected since the adulthood of animals is marked by their ability to reproduce.

This proved beyond a doubt that the axolotls were neotenic, as they also retained their feathery gills, fin tails, and lack of moving eyelids. 

Some other salamanders are neotenic, too, and they remain aquatic their entire lives. Regardless of the species of salamander, though, they all have something in common. The river bodies are all surrounded by deserts. This shows that this trait of neoteny was a selected trait.

Dumeril’s experiment

Another phenomenon faced by Auguste Dumeril was when the axolotls morphed into land-like features. They lost their gills and it evolved into a more prominent tail, similar to the tiger salamander. 

He tried to find the reason for this but was unable to do so until his death. However, when the myth became the focus of research many years later, scientists discovered the importance of the thyroid in metamorphosis.

So, they tested it on the axolotl and discovered that when axolotls were fed thyroid tissue, they began to transform. They also transformed when forced to breathe air, which is a more cruel method. It causes stress to the animal, and it also takes more time. 

This shows the incredible ability of this animal to adapt to harsh environmental conditions.

Regenerative superpower (literally)

All animals have regenerative abilities to some degree. Regeneration is part of everyday life for some. 

Hydras and flatworms, for example, can regenerate their entire bodies from a tiny remnant of their original. These two have something in common, they're invertebrates.

In vertebrates, regeneration is limited to the growth of skin and scar tissue. We cannot regrow our limbs, nor can we regrow our organs (except for the liver). 

Almost no vertebrate can regenerate beyond human capabilities, except the axolotl and other salamanders. 

The way axolotls regenerates begins with their remaining cells in that region. After a clot stops the bleeding, cells under the skin begin to divide rapidly, forming a blastema. 

The cells in the blastema then dedifferentiate back into stem cells (origin of all cells). How is that even possible? It sounds so fictional, but that's the biology of the axolotl. 

After stem cells are formed, it dedifferentiates back into bone, cartilage or blood vessels, and slowly, the limb is restored, good as new! 

This ability is also true for a fair amount of its brain tissue. In mammals like us, when part of the brain is damaged or lost, there is always no solution because brain cells only grow in the embryonic stage. It usually takes a miracle to heal a damaged brain.

Sounds like something only a god can do. Don't you think?

Research in this area

The research into how the axolotl can carry out so many physiologically impossible processes is still ongoing to this day. More researchers are needed in this field as this animal undoubtedly carries secrets that could solve many problems in the world, today. 

A problem

There is a problem that hinders continued research into the axolotl. Humans!

Statistically, the axolotl population has declined by over 95 percent from 1996 to 2020. This is due to the way people live.

Axolotls are threatened, and are almost completely annihilated in the wild. Today, the only place where axolotls are still present is in Lake Xochimilco in Mexico. However, due to overpopulation, more than 75 percent of the lake has been drained. In addition, it has also been badly polluted that poisonous algae can be seen almost everywhere. With these conditions, the situation is dire.

Hence, conservation industries are working hard to save this wonderful species from extinction. However, in their efforts to do so, axolotls are mostly inbred so they lack the genetic diversity to fight diseases that normal Axolotls could figjht. In summary, there’s no place like home.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the axolotl is an amazing animal that needs to appreciated due to its importance to humans in research. They are the closest animal we have to unlock the regeneration of limbs and growth of various organs.

With the degree to which we pollute everything, we simply ignore what is at stake and it doesn’t have to be that way. The change begins with you and I. Stop pollutions of all form! If possible, keep endangered animals like axolotls as pets, and take good care of them.

Many people do, and little do they know that they have gods in their fish tanks.

By Niyi Ogunkoya