Spider venom may be deadly, but it comes with some advantages. In the past, research has found that venom could alleviate pain without causing any adverse side effects. Now, new research out of Australia's University of Queensland is indicating that the venom of the Fraser Island (K'gari) funnel-web spider can help prevent damage caused by a heart attack and even extend the life of donor hearts.

In many species including humans, the cells responsible for reproduction, the germ cells, are often highly interconnected and share their cytoplasm. In the hermaphrodite nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, up to 500 germ cells are connected to each other in the gonad, the tissue that produces eggs and sperm.