According to the new study, which was based on a species of sponge found on the Great Barrier Reef off the coast of Australia, the creature has some 18,000 genes. This is fewer than the number of genes humans possess (currently estimated at about 20,500 genes) — but not far off. A few years ago, many scientists would have been surprised to find such a diverse set of genes in such a simple creature, said Srivastava.
Read more on Inside Science.