Fig. 2

Technical advancements boost cnidarian research. a Fluorescent micrograph of a Hydractinia symbiolonigcarpus gastrozooid expressing eGFP (green) from the endogenous Eukaryotic elongation factor 1 alpha (Eef1a) locus. CRISPR/Cas9-mediated homologous recombination enables efficient and precise genome editing in Hydractinia and opens up new possibilities for future research (courtesy of Steven Sanders). b LWamide-positive neurons (red) surrounding the pharynx of a Nematostella primary polyp, counter stained with phalloidin (green). c LWamide-positive neurons in an adult Nematostella tentacle. Establishment of various transgenic lines such as NvLWamide:: mCherry animals illustrated above enables direct visualization of specific neurons and provides new insights into the development, regeneration, and function of the relatively diffused cnidarian nervous system (courtesy of Jamie Havrilak)