Salamander Regeneration

The body plans of vertebrates are more complex than those of hydras and planaria, but some vertebrate groups—for example, urodele amphibians such as salamanders—are champion regenerators. A salamander can regenerate limbs, a tail, a jaw, and parts of the eye.

A key step in the regeneration of a salamander limb is the formation of a blastema, a blob of dedifferentiated cells that can develop into the new limb. Salamanders can regrow an amputated limb, but unlike planaria fragments, the amputated limb cannot regenerate a new body.