# List of unusual biological names

This is a list of unusual biological names, given to biological inventions and discoveries. One might consider the listed names unusual due to their containing pop culture references or puns.

## Genes and proteins

In the early days of genomics, genes were often given creative names upon discovery. A nomenclature committee later established naming guidelines, but several early names remain.
| Name | Explanation | Biological role |
| Bag-of-marbles | | |
| Buttonhead | | |
| Cheap date | Mutations in this gene cause marked susceptibility to alcohol intoxication | |
| Deadpan | | |
| DIABLO | Direct IAP binding protein, low | |
| Dreadlocks | Mutations in this gene cause cell projections to clump together like dreadlocks | Murine ortholog of Nck |
| Dunce | A memory-related gene | A memory-related gene associated with Rutabaga |
| ELMO | Engulfment and Cell Motility | Contains the family ELMO1, ELMO2, and ELMO3 |
| Exuperantia | Named after St. Exuperantia | A gene associated with dividing the head and body into regions |
| Fizzy-related | | |
| Flippase and floppase | Protein that "flips" and "flops" phosphatidylserines on the cell membrane from the inner side and the outer side, respectively | |
| Hedgehog signaling pathway, and the associated genes: Sonic hedgehog (and formerly associated with tiggywinkle hedgehog) Desert hedgehog Indian hedgehog Smoothened Frizzled Patched | Named for the video game character Sonic the Hedgehog | Critical gene involved in development and tumorigenesis |
| Headcase | | |
| Hunchback | | |
| Indy | Short for I'm not dead yet | |
| Ken and Barbie | Mutations in the ken and barbie locus cause loss of external male and female genitalia in a fraction of homozygous flies | Drosophila gene |
| Lunatic Fringe, Manic Fringe, and Radical Fringe | | |
| Makes caterpillars floppy | Codes for a toxin which leads to insects’ bodies breaking down | Gene in Photorhabdus luminescens |
| MAP kinase kinase kinase and MAP kinase kinase kinase kinase | | |
| MinosPhrime | Named after Minos Prime from the video game ULTRAKILL. | bacteriophage |
| Mothers against decapentaplegic 1–9, and the associated Daughters against dpp | Takes the name from "Mothers against drunk driving" and similar campaigns | Mutations in the gene of the mother cause improper development in the offspring |
| Moron gene | A prophage gene that has no role in the phage's lysogenic cycle. | |
| NEMO | NF-kappa-B essential modulator | |
| Methuselah-like proteins | Named for Methuselah, extends the lifespan of an organism | |
| MTHFR1 | Short for METHYLENETETRAHYDROFOLATE REDUCTASE 1 | methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase MTHFR1 mRNA |
| NUDEL-Gen | German for "Noodle" | NudE Neurodevelopment Protein 1 Like 1 |
| RING | Short for Really Interesting New Gene | |
| POKEMON | POK erythroid myeloid ontogenic factor, changed to Zbtb7 after a lawsuit was threatened | |
| Pikachurin | | |
| PUMPKIN | Short for PLASTID 55 UMP KINASE | Encodes a functional UMP Kinase located in the plastid that binds to group II intron plastid transcription products. Mutants show decreased accumulation of target transcripts/proteins. |
| Salvador | | |
| Scramblase | An enzyme that "scrambles" phospholipids between the inside and outside of the cell membrane | |
| Slingshot homolog | | |
| Slit-Robo and the associated Netrin-Frazzled | | |
| SMURF1 and SMURF2, which interacts with Mothers against decapentaplegic 7 | SMAD Ubiquitination Regulatory Factor 1/2 | |
| Son of Sevenless | A protein involved in MAPK signal cascade | |
| SPOCK1 | Zebrafish with this mutation develop pointed-ears reminiscent of Spock | |
| SWEET transporters | Sugars will eventually be exported transporter | Sugar transporters |
| Swiss cheese | Mutations cause the brain to develop with lesions resembling Swiss cheese | |
| Spätzle | based on the spaetzle-like (German for a type of noodle) shape of the larvae of D. melanogaster | |
| Tafazzin | Named after the masochistic Italian comic character Tafazzi after alleged hardships in its discovery | |
| Time for Coffee | Active in the night. | Regulator of circadian clock in Arabidopsis thaliana |
| Tinman gene | Named for the tinman, required for proper development of the heart | |
| Toll-like receptors | "Toll" is German for "Amazing", "Awesome". Christiane Nüsslein-Volhard and her colleague Prof. Eric Wieschaus sat at a double microscope that allows two people to examine the same object at the same time. When they saw an embryo mutant one day whose development was ventralised, they were both completely surprised and spontaneously exclaimed "Toll" (great). | |
| UNICORN | | Regulates planar growth in Arabidopsis thaliana |

### Controversies

Unusual names have caused issues for scientists explaining genetic diseases to lay-people, such as when an individual is affected by a gene with an offensive or insensitive name. This has particularly been noted in patients with a defect in the sonic hedgehog gene pathway and the disease formerly named CATCH22 for "cardiac anomaly, T-cell deficit, clefting and hypocalcaemia for chromosome 22q11.2 microdeletions". This name was abandoned due to the no-win connotations.
In 1993 Alfonso Martinez Arias, a researcher at the University of Cambridge, was ordered to change the name of the gene he had discovered, VELCRO, because of copyright issues with Velcro. The gene was renamed to puckered. In 2005, Pokémon threatened to sue the discoverer of POKEMON because the name was attracting attention when its link to the development of cancer was published.

## Molecules

* Moronic acid, a natural triterpene
* Traumatic acid, a monounsaturated dicarboxylic acid naturally occurring in plants

## Species

Some species with unusual scientific names, because of length, repetition, or origin or meaning of name, include:
* Aha ha
* Anableps anableps
* Ba humbugi
* Boops boops
* Crikey steveirwini
* Cyrtodactylus australotitiwangsaensis
* Foa fo
* Gorilla gorilla gorilla
* Griseotyrannus aurantioatrocristatus
* Hotwheels sisyphus
* Ia io
* Megaloblatta longipennis
* Mini ature, Mini mum, and Mini scule
* Myxococcus llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogochensis
* Parastratiosphecomyia stratiosphecomyioides
* Pinus rigida
* Penstemon whippleanus
* Spongiforma squarepantsii
* Turdus maximus
* Dziwneono
* Lomankus edgecombei
* Unguinychus onyx
* Funny valentine
* Punk ferox
* Emo vorticaudum
* Wakiewakie lawsoni
Some species with unusual biological common names include:
* A.E.E.C.L.'s sportive lemur
* Bony-eared assfish
* Brother moth
* The uncertain, a species of moth
* E.T. sponge
* Slippery dick, a species of fish
* Happy Eddie, a species of shark
* Humuhumunukunukuāpuaʻa
* Mountain chicken, a species of frog
* The murderer, a species of jumping spider
* Suspected, a species of moth
* Southern old lady moth
* Batman moth
* Little devil, a species of moth
* Lettuce shark, a species of moth
* Nonconformist, a species of moth
* German cousin, a species of moth
* Neighbor moth
* Bride, a species of moth
* Laugher, a species of moth
* Joker moth
* Infant, a species of moth
* Freak, a species of butterfly

## Techniques

* Chromatin Interaction Analysis by Paired-End Tag Sequencing (ChIA-PET) is a technique to determine chromatin interactions which shares a name with Chia Pets.
* GluSnFR (Glutamate-sensitive fluorescent reporter ) ("glue-sniffer") is a genetically engineered protein used to monitor glutamate release into the synapse.
* KINC ("Kink") is a computer program used to generate co-expression networks
* SHREC (single-molecule high-resolution colocalization) ("Shrek") is a modified labeling technique named after a titular character in the movie Shrek. Its older sister technique FIONA is still used as well.
* CRISPy TAKO (CRISPR Turbo Accelerated KnockOut) ("crispy taco") is a gene knockout technique useful for in vivo reverse genetic screens.