Page 53 - Engineering in Nature

Harun Yahya

• A Miniature Biochemical Factory
Eucalyptus leaves contain high levels of fiber, low levels of pro-
tein, and strong-smelling oils, phenolic compounds, and cyanide,
which is inedible and even lethal to many mammals. These substan-
ces lose their poisonous effects in the koala's body, because it pos-

sesses a digestive system with a very special anatomy and
physiology.
Like other herbivorous mammals, the koala is unable to digest cel-
lulose—the main component of eucalyptus leaves—on its own. That
process is carried out for it by micro-organisms that can digest cellu-
lose and live in the animal's cecum.
The koala's cecum opens onto the large intestine and is so large
that it represents 20% of the total length of the intestines. Between 1.8
and 2.5 meters (6-8 feet) long, the cecum is the most interesting part of
the koala's digestive system. There, the leaves' passage through the
digestive system is delayed, and micro-organisms in the cecum go
into action and make the cellulose usable by the koala. In that sense,
the koala's cecum can be likened to a biochemical factory. As that fac-
tory processes the cellulose, oils and harmful substances (phenol
compounds) are filtered and rendered harmless in yet another fac-
tory—the liver.
Since eucalyptus leaves are koalas' only food, all of the animal's
carbohydrate needs are met by the digestion of cellulose by micro-or-

ganisms. Clearly, the koala could not live without them. Therefore,
these two life forms must have come into being at the same time. This
is proof that a single Creator created both koala bears and micro-or-
ganisms; that God created them both in mutual harmony.
God knows all the needs of all the entities He creates, and creates

Adnan Oktar
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