Stealing a ‘superpower’
Corey Allard in his lab at Harvard Medical School.Niles Singer/Harvard Staff Photographer Science & Tech Stealing a ‘superpower’ Study finds some sea slugs consume algae, incorporate photosynthetic parts into their own bodies to keep producing nutrients Kermit Pattison Harvard Staff Writer June 25, 2025 5 min read It could be the plot of a summer sci-fi blockbuster: A creature feeds on its prey and inherits its “superpower.” Only this is real. A new study led by Harvard biologists describes how some sea slugs consume algae and incorporate their photosynthetic organelles into their own bodies. The organelles continue to perform photosynthesis, providing nutrients and energy to their hosts and serving as emergency rations in times of starvation. “This is an organism that can steal parts of other organisms, put them in their own cells, and use them,” said Corey Allard, lead author of the new study and a former postdoc in the Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology. “And I thought...