Why are cockroaches so hard to kill? - Ameya Gondhalekar
3,622,306 Views
4,003 Questions Answered
TEDEd Animation
Let’s Begin…
In ancient Egypt, there was a spell that declared, “Be far from me, O vile cockroach.” Thousands of years later, we’re still trying to oust these insects. But from poison traps to brandished slippers, cockroaches seem to weather just about everything we throw at them. So, what makes cockroaches so hard to kill? Ameya Gondhalekar digs into the genetic wonders of this troublingly tenacious creature.
One of the mechanisms that cockroaches utilize to disarm pesticides that are used to kill them is through overexpression or increased activity of detoxification enzymes. Can you name all or some of those enzymes? And are there commonalties between detoxification enzymes of cockroaches and humans?
Sign in to answer questionAbout TED-Ed Animations
TED-Ed Animations feature the words and ideas of educators brought to life by professional animators. Are you an educator or animator interested in creating a TED-Ed Animation? Nominate yourself here »
Meet The Creators
- Educator Ameya Gondhalekar
- Director Irida Zhonga
- Narrator Addison Anderson
- Storyboard Artist Irida Zhonga
- Animator Hoda Ramy, Gabriela Sibilska, Kostas Firinidis
- Character Designer Kostas Firinidis, Christos Papandreopoulos
- Background Artist Christos Papandreopoulos, Kostas Firinidis
- Music Phil Brookes
- Sound Designer Phil Brookes
- Director of Production Gerta Xhelo
- Editorial Director Alex Rosenthal
- Producer Bethany Cutmore-Scott
- Editorial Producer Cella Wright
- Script Editor Alex Gendler
- Fact-Checker Julia Dickerson
