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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elysia_chlorotica Suggestions: or the life cycle section, it could use more information, most of the information is about feeding, while the other sections lack the amount of attention that this section does. This article could also talk about any other uses for the chlorophyll besides for feeding purposes. This article could also talk about how the slug came about getting this unique ability. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Larentap (talk • contribs) 02:17, 1 October 2014 (UTC)

One sentence: Since the slug does not have a protective shell or any other means of protection, the slug also uses the green color obtained from the algae as a camouflage against predators.[2] Citation: name="Rumpho,Summer, and Manhart. "Solar-Powered Sea Slugs. Mollusc/Algal Chloroplast Symbiosis." Plant Physiology.May 2000.

Contribution to wikipedia article Added lines: Some Elysia chlorotica slugs have even been known to be able to use photosynthesis for up to a year after only a few feedings. The chloroplasts of the algae are incorporated into the cell through a process known as phagocytosis in which the cells of the sea slug engulf the cells of the algae and make the chloroplasts apart of its own cellular content. By spending less energy on activities such as finding food, the slugs can invest this precious energy into other important activities. It is due to this ability to utilize horizontal gene transfer that the chloroplasts are able to be used as efficiently as they have been. If an organism did not incorporate the chloroplasts into its own cells and genome, the algal cells would need to be fed upon more often due to a lack of efficiency in the use and preservation of the chloroplasts. This once again leads to a conservation of energy, as stated earlier, allowing the slugs to focus on more important activities such as mating and avoiding predation. By taking on the green color from the chloroplasts of the algal cells, the slugs are able to blend in with the green sea bed beneath them, helping them improve their chances of survival and fitness. This reddish-brown color is most often associated with juveniles since they are usually this color before they begin feeding on algae. This reddish color in turn could potentially harm the juvenile since they can easily be seen by predators, making them less likely to make it to adult-hood. Photosynthesis is a chemical process that harnesses sunlight and allows it to be used as an energy source for organisms. This process was once believed to be exclusive to plants, but the discovery of organisms such as Elysia chlorotica has challenged that theory. Article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elysia_chlorotica#Feeding

Final Draft

Introduction: What is photosynthesis? In simplest terms, it is a chemical process that uses sunlight as an energy source. Photosynthesis evolved once over the course of history and has gave way to the rise of all the cyanobacteria that we know today (Venn, Loram, Douglas, 2007). Photosynthesis is used by many different organisms, most of which are plants. Due to this fact, over the years, it has been commonly believed that photosynthesis is a phenomenon exclusively reserved for plants. Even though it is true that most organisms using photosynthesis are plants, it is however false that this is a process exclusive and unique to only plants. Many eukaryotes have acquired this metabolic skill through symbiosis with cyanobacteria or algae (Venn, Loram, Douglas). There have many discoveries of animals that have the ability to harness the power of photosynthesis, including the spotted salamander, the oriental hornet, and the sea slug. Each of these organisms utilize photosynthesis, but they each have their own way of carrying out the process. Some of these organisms have the ability to harness solar power directly while others require help in order to do this. Those who require help have a special symbiotic relationship with algae that make this process possible. But what exactly is this relationship and what is required of the animals in order to carry out this process?

Discussion: Symbiotic animals challenge the old belief of plants only being able to use photosynthesis because they contain green photobionts that are able to convert solar energy into useable energy for the cell of the organism (Rumpho, Pelletreau, Moustafa, and Bhattacharya, 2010). One of the incredible organisms that have challenged the belief that photosynthesis is unique only to plants is the sea slug. The sea slug has a very unique relationship with algae because in order to maintain its photosynthetic abilities, it must consume the algae. Not only must the slug consume the algae, it must also “steal” the chloroplasts of its algal food. This ability allows certain species of slugs to be able to utilize photosynthesis, and depending on the species, some slugs can continue to use photosynthesis for up to a year without any more algae being used as a food source (Pierce and Curtis 2012). But how exactly is the sea slug able to perform this process? This question is one that can only be answered by specifying a particular species of sea slugs. Through experimentation, some species of slugs such as Elysia chlorotica have been found to utilize Horizontal Gene Transfer (Mujer et al. 1996; Green et al. 2000), while others simply eat their algal prey and let their cells do the rest. Latter type of sea slugs allow their cells to puncture the cells of the algae and consume all of the contents within that cell. After the slug cell has consumed all of the contents of the algal cell, the cell discards everything that it consumed, except for the chlorophyll. The chlorophyll is then incorporated into the cells through phagocytosis, allowing the sea slug to harness the power of the algae and utilize the sun for energy (Rumpho, Summer, and ManHart). This ability proves to be a very helpful one for the slugs for two main reasons. The main reason that this process is beneficial to these animals is because as stated earlier, the incorporation of the chlorophyll into their cells allows them to survive off of energy from the sun, meaning that these organisms can go from months up to a year without having to eat algae. This in turn can allow the slug to conserve and use energy more efficiently. If the slug does not have to worry about food, it can focus its energy on other things such as survival against predation and also mating. By investing more energy into these two categories, the slugs could potentially increase their overall fitness by having more offspring and passing on the traits that have enabled them to survive as well as they have. The ability to steal and utilize the chlorophyll obtained from algae is important because the slugs do not have an efficient means of protection against predators. By eating the algae and incorporating it into their cells and digestive system, the sea slugs take on the chlorophyll’s green color, giving them a means of protection through the use of camouflage. Sea slugs are normally a brownish color as juveniles before they begin feeding, making them vulnerable to predation since the sea bed below them is normally a greenish color. So as a juvenile, the chances of survival are very low, but as the juveniles mature and begin to feed on algae, they adopt their green color, making their chance of survival that much greater. While sea slugs appear to gain their photosynthetic ability by eating algae, it is not the only organism that has the ability to utilize photosynthesis. Unlike the sea slug which needs to feed upon algae in order to obtain the ability, the spotted salamander appears to be born with the ability to use the process. This suggests that the symbiotic relationship between the spotted salamander and algae are extremely strong, meaning that there is a lot to gain from both parties within this relationship. After studying the embryos of spotted salamanders, an observation was made that was very intriguing. Scientists noticed a green color flickering about within the capsule of the embryos. This flickering color of green was later identified to be a single celled alga by the name of Oophila amblystomatis. This species of algae and the spotted salamander appear to aid one another from the time that the salamanders are laid as eggs. This interaction was thought to exist between the two organisms separately, but later research revealed that there are algae that are present throughout cells all over the salamanders body (Petheric 2010). Spotted salamanders lay their eggs in bodies of water where a special bond is formed between the eggs and the algae The eggs produce nitrogen waste as the grow, which can be used by the algae, and in turn, the algae increases the oxygen levels within the water, making the habitat even more suitable for the developing embryos (Petheric 2010). The presence of the algae within the cells of the salamander embryos also decreases the amount of time it takes for the eggs to hatch and has also been accredited for decreasing embryonic mortalities. In turn the algae are given a place to live. Studies have shown that the growth of the algae is minute when it is contained within the egg capsule, but once the eggs hatch, the algae begin to grow substantially, showing that the salamanders themselves are responsible for the growth of this species of algae (Kerney, Kim, Hall, Bishop, Heiss and Hangarter 2011). To go along with all of the benefits mentioned, the salamander is also able to take advantage of the benefits the algae gets from using photosynthesis. As the algae use photosynthesis, the salamander’s cells make use of the oxygen and carbohydrates that are produced by the algal cells. This allows the salamanders to also sustain themselves for a long period of time without food, but not as quite as long as the sea slug. The sea slug and spotted salamander both require an interaction with algae in order to obtain the ability to utilize photosynthesis, but there is one animal that has been observed to use solar energy on its own. The sea slug and spotted salamander require algae to aid in its ability to use the suns energy, but this cannot be said for the oriental hornet. The oriental hornet was first discovered by a man by the name of Dr. Jacob Ishay. Dr. Ishay was able to observe that the oriental hornet was able to convert solar energy into electrical energy through the use of a chemical called Xanthoperin found in the yellow band on its body (DeHaan 2014). With the help of Dr. Ishay, a man named Dr. Plotkin was actually able to develop a device that was meant to mimic the process used by the hornet. Even though the device turned out to be very inefficient, it did succeed in pinpointing the process that the hornets used (DeHaan, 2014). This ability to turn solar energy into electrical energy is very important to the oriental hornet because a lot of its activities are attributed to this process. When the hornet is exposed to sunlight, the hornet uses the converted energy to fuel processes such as flight or digging their underground nests. The energy also helps carry out metabolic functions such as producing and filtering sugars within the body of the hornet. When regions where these metabolic activities occur are studied, it shows that the activity of enzymes in this area decreases when the hornet is exposed to sunlight so that the hornet can save its own energy (Marshall, 2010). Even though the oriental hornet does not use photosynthesis like the sea slug or spotted salamander, it does have the ability to convert solar energy into a type of energy that it can use to benefit itself.

Conclusion: The use of solar energy has always been believed to be a process that is unique only to plants and single celled eukaryotes such as algae, but this belief has been strongly challenged with the discovery of multiple organisms that have been able to harness the power of the sun through symbiotic relationships with algae and through the creation of processes that resemble photosynthesis. There is quite a bit of information that is known about these organisms and the relationships they have with other organisms, but there is still a lot left to learn, not to mention all the other possible organisms that could possibly be discovered over the next few years. One of the main questions that remain is how did these organisms develop these relationships and create the processes that allow them to benefit from the rays given off from the sun. Through the use of techniques such as constructing phylogenetic trees, it could help pinpoint when these relationships began to be formed. With the research of many hard working scientists such as Dr. Ishay and Dr. Plotkin, we may be able to enhance the technology we already have and harness the power of the sun more efficiently that we already do.