Ascidians belong to the phylum Chordata.
This means they are our close relatives.
We use Polyandrocarpa misakiensis (no English name) for our research.
 
 

A ventral view of Polyandrocarpa misakiensis.
The adult animal is about 1 cm-long.
The brancheal sac (pharynx), stomach and intestine are seen.
The growing bud is an outgrowth of the parental body wall.
The bud separates from the parent and starts cell differentiation
and morphogenesis to reconstruct a new individual.

What is your first impression?
Can you believe that they are our relatives?

We are studying mechanism of bud development of this species.

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Ascidians are a good model for studying embryogenesis.
For an introduction to ascidian embryogenesis visit HERE.