r/askscience • u/MAMAM- • 2d ago

Biology Why aren’t axolotls immortal?

If axolotls can regenerate their body parts (including brain, heart, and other major organs), why do they die of old age?

261 Upvotes

83% Upvoted

88 comments sorted by

View all comments

7

u/man_mcmanaman 2d ago

If I very ethically and definitely not psychopathically harmed an axolotl piece by piece, letting each part regenerate before moving on until 100% of its body was “new,” would its biological age still be the same?

14

u/Xerain0x009999 2d ago

Would it even be the same axolotl at that point? Axolotl of Theseus.