Unlike other giant unicellular organisms, which are multinucleate, members of this genus possess a single nucleus located in the rhizoid, which allows the cell to regenerate completely if its cap is removed.

[7] This was the first demonstration that genes are encoded by DNA in eukaryotes; earlier studies by Oswald Avery and others had shown that this was true for prokaryotes.

[8] In the 19th century, the same designation Acetabularia was proposed by George Edward Massee for a genus of fungi (now Cyphellopus), but this usage is obsolete and considered invalid as the algal name takes precedence.

It has three basic parts: its rhizoid, a short set of root-like appendages that contain the nucleus and anchor the cell to fissures in a substrate; its median stalk, which accounts for most of its length; and its apex, where its cap forms.

Although a single cell, Acetabularia exhibits a remarkably complex shape and has therefore long been a model organism for studying gene expression and morphogenesis.

It seems to transport messenger RNA molecules (in an inactive riboprotein form) from the nucleus to its apical tips, where they are translated into proteins.

They are generally considered to be more difficult or unappealing macroalgae to care for in the reef aquarium, a fish-only, or a FOWLR (Fish Only With Live Rock) system, as they are delicate, readily eaten by herbivorous fish, grow slowly, and do not have the high nutrient uptake that reef aquarium refugium species (such as Chaetomorpha and Caulerpa) do.