The Three-Banded Panther Worm is Rewriting the Story of Brain Evolution
The three-banded panther worm’s brain is more condensed than the nerve net typical of other types of invertebrates, yet it lacks the specialized regions present in bilaterally symmetrical organisms.
Illustration by Kai Gietzen
Research in Mansi Srivastava's lab is featured in The Transmitter, The three-banded panther worm is rewriting the story of brain evolution.
The animal has a brain structure all its own, according to a 2026 preprint. The finding hints that brains could have evolved centralization before regionalization.