Are there any invertebrates that can and cannot be paralyzed?
In: 9
If you consider paralysis to mean “can’t move if they want to” then yes. You can paralyse invertebrates. They still use similar nerve cells as vertebrates, and just like you can inject a vertebrate with a certain drug that blocks the signals to the muscles, you can block those signals in invertebrates. The signal is now unable to travel down to the part of the body that is supposed to move and they are in essence paralysed.
If you consider paralysis to be more like when people have paraplegia and can’t move their legs, that’s usually due to a problem in the spine. Invertebrates, by definition, lack a spine so they can’t really be paraplegic. They also usually don’t have 4 limbs like we do so the definitions don’t really apply.
As long as an animal has a place where a signal comes from, and a place where it goes to to make the animal move, you can block that signal and keep it from moving.
Latest Answers