@article {1891,
	title = {It is not all about regeneration: Planarians striking power to stand starvation},
	pages = { - },
	abstract = {AbstractAll living forms, prokaryotes as eukaryotes, have some means of adaptation to food scarcity, which extends the survival chances under extreme environmental conditions. Nowadays we know that dietary interventions, including fasting, extends lifespan of many organisms and can also protect against age-related diseases including in humans. Therefore, the capacity of adapting to periods of food scarcity may have evolved billions of years ago not only to allow immediate organismal survival but also to be able to extend organismal lifespan or at least to lead to a healthier remaining lifespan. Planarians have been the center of attention since more than two centuries because of their astonishing power of full body regeneration that relies on a large amount of adult stem cells or neoblasts. However, they also present an often-overlooked characteristic. They are able to stand long time starvation. Planarians have adapted to periods of fasting by shrinking or degrowing. Here we will review the published data about starvation in planarians and conclude with the possibility of starvation being one of the processes that rejuvenate the planarian, thus explaining the historical notion of non-ageing planarians.
},
	keywords = {Apoptosis, Autophagy, Degrowth, Fasting, Flatworm, Insulin, JNK, mTOR, planarian, Scale, Starvation, stem cell},
	isbn = {1084-9521},
	url = {https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1084952117301982},
	author = {Felix, Daniel A. and Guti{\'e}rrez-Guti{\'e}rrez, {\'O}scar and Espada, Lilia and Thems, Anne and Gonz{\'a}lez-Est{\'e}vez, Cristina}
}
@article {1675,
	title = {Identification and characterization of a novel multifunctional placenta specific protein 8 in <i>Dugesia japonica</i>},
	volume = {613},
	year = {2017},
	month = {2017/5/20/},
	pages = {1 - 9},
	abstract = {<p>AbstractPlacenta specific protein 8 (Plac8) has been well studied in vertebrates, yet little is known in invertebrates. In this study, a novel Plac8 from the planarian Dugesia japonica was identified and its functions in immune responses and development were characterized. Our results show that Djplac8 was expressed in the pharynx, epidermis and intestine of intact adult planarian. The expression of DjPlac8 increased significantly upon lipopolysaccharide (LPS) challenge, and inhibited the growth of the Gram-negative bacteria (Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa), suggesting the role of Plac8 in immune response. Spatial and temporal expression and distribution of DjPlac8 mRNA in regenerated planarians indicates that DjPlac8 was mainly expressed in the pharynx. In situ hybridization also revealed the elevated expression of the DjPlac8 gene in the embryonic pharynx, germ band and parenchyma cells, indicating an important role in embryonic development of D. japonica. When DjPlac8 was deactivated by RNA interference-mediated knockdown, the head of planarians underwent abnormal development. In summary, we identified DjPlac8 as a novel multifunctional protein that plays essential roles in immune response and development of planarians.</p>
},
	keywords = {Development, Immunity, Pharynx, Plac8, planarian},
	isbn = {0378-1119},
	url = {http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378111917301130},
	author = {Pang, Qiuxiang and Gao, Lili and Bai, Yun and Deng, Hongkuan and Han, Yu and Hu, Wenjing and Zhang, Yanhui and Yuan, Shanhang and Sun, Wenping and Lu, Yiqian and Zhang, Xiufang and Liu, Baohua and Zhao, Bosheng}
}
@article {BEM:BEM21971,
	title = {Early exposure of rotating magnetic fields promotes central nervous regeneration in planarian Girardia sinensis},
	journal = {Bioelectromagnetics},
	volume = {37},
	number = {4},
	year = {2016},
	pages = {244{\textendash}255},
	abstract = {Magnetic field exposure is an accepted safe and effective modality for nerve injury. However, it is clinically used only as a supplement or salvage therapy at the later stage of treatment. Here, we used a planarian Girardia sinensis decapitated model to investigate beneficial effects of early rotary non-uniform magnetic fields (RMFs) exposure on central nervous regeneration. Our results clearly indicated that magnetic stimulation induced from early RMFs exposure significantly promoted neural regeneration of planarians. This stimulating effect is frequency and intensity dependent. Optimum effects were obtained when decapitated planarians were cultured at 20 {\textdegree}C, starved for 3 days before head-cutting, and treated with 6 Hz 0.02 T RMFs. At early regeneration stage, RMFs exposure eliminated edema around the wound and facilitated subsequent formation of blastema. It also accelerated cell proliferation and recovery of neuron functionality. Early RMFs exposure up-regulated expression of neural regeneration related proteins, EGR4 and Netrin 2, and mature nerve cell marker proteins, NSE and NPY. These results suggest that RMFs therapy produced early and significant benefit in central nervous regeneration, and should be clinically used at the early stage of neural regeneration, with appropriate optimal frequency and intensity. Bioelectromagnetics. Bioelectromagnetics. 37:244{\textendash}255, 2016. {\textcopyright} 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.},
	keywords = {neural regeneration, planarian, rotary non-uniform magnetic fields, stimulating effect, window effect},
	issn = {1521-186X},
	doi = {10.1002/bem.21971},
	url = {http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/bem.21971},
	author = {Chen, Qiang and Lin, Gui-miao and Wu, Nan and Tang, Sheng-wei and Zheng, Zhi-jia and Lin, Marie Chia-mi and Xu, Gai-xia and Liu, Hao and Deng, Yue-yue and Zhang, Xiao-yun and Chen, Si-ping and Wang, Xiao-mei and Niu, Han-ben}
}
