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Health & Science6h 23m ago
A new study led by Dr. Toni Gabaldón published in Nature suggests that the origin of complex cells was a longer, more gradual, and more collaborative process involving multiple bacterial groups and giant viruses, rather than primarily an archaeon and the bacterium that became the mitochondrion.
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Barcelona, Spain
Who
Dr. Toni Gabaldón, Moisès Bernabeu, Saioa Manzano-Morales, Marina Marcet-Houben, IRB Barcelona, Barcelona Supercomputing Center-Centro Nacional de Supercomputación (BSC-CNS)
What
A new study led by Dr. Toni Gabaldón published in Nature suggests that the origin of complex cells was a longer, more gradual, and more collaborative process involving multiple bacterial groups and giant viruses, rather than primarily an archaeon and the bacterium that became the mitochondrion.
When
Sat, 13 Jun 2026 16:40:09 GMT · 6h 23m ago
Where
Barcelona, Spain ·
Why
The study utilized computational molecular archaeology with supercomputers and genomic data to reconstruct gene and protein families of the Last Eukaryotic Common Ancestor (LECA), detecting signals from various microorganisms.
The Frontline Impact
How this affects you
This research expands our understanding of how complex eukaryotic cells, which make up all animals, plants, fungi, and protists, evolved, highlighting a more intricate history of microbial alliances and genetic exchanges.
Story chain
5 events in this thread- Currently Reading6h 23m agoA new study led by Dr. Toni Gabaldón published in Nature suggests that the origin of complex cells was a longer, more gradual, and more collaborative process involving multiple bacterial groups and giant viruses, rather than primarily an archaeon and the bacterium that became the mitochondrion.
- Health & Science6h 23m agoA new study published in Nature rethinks the dominant explanation for the origin of eukaryotic cells, suggesting it was a longer, more gradual, and more collaborative process involving other bacterial groups and giant viruses.Open article
- Health & Science6h 23m agoA new study published in Nature rethinks the dominant explanation for the origin of eukaryotic cells, suggesting it was a longer, more gradual, and more collaborative process involving other bacterial groups and giant viruses.Open article
- Health & Science6h 23m agoA new study published in Nature rethinks the view that the acquisition of the mitochondrion was the ultimate turning point in the origin of complex cells, suggesting it was a longer, more gradual, and more collaborative process.Open article
- Health & Science6h 23m agoA new study led by Dr. Toni Gabaldón published in Nature suggests that the origin of complex cells was a longer, more gradual, and more collaborative process than previously thought, involving other bacterial groups and giant viruses.Open article