Multicellularity–the integration of previously autonomous cells into a new, more complex organism–is one of the major transitions in evolution. Multicellularity changed evolutionary possibilities and facilitated the evolution of increased complexity. […]
evolution
Posted inOrigin & Evolution of Life, Press Release
Fossil Evidence Supports Theory That First Mass Extinction Engineered by Early Animals
Newly discovered fossil evidence from Namibia strengthens the proposition that the world’s first mass extinction was caused by “ecosystem engineers” – newly evolved biological organisms that altered the environment so […]
Posted inGenomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Origin & Evolution of Life, Press Release
A Warmer Early Earth May Have Experienced Faster Evolution of Life
Early life forms on Earth are likely to have mutated and evolved at much higher rates than they do today, suggests a new analysis from researchers at the University of […]
Posted inOrigin & Evolution of Life, Press Release
Evolution Influenced By Temporary Microbes
Life on Earth often depends on symbiotic relationships between microbes and other forms of life. A new theory suggests that researchers should consider how symbiotic microbes can influence the evolution […]
Posted inBiochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics
Four billion-year-old chemistry in cells today
Parts of the primordial soup in which life arose have been maintained in our cells today according to scientists at the University of East Anglia. Research published today in the […]
Posted inGenomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Origin & Evolution of Life
Geometry Shapes Evolution of Early Multicellularity
Organisms have increased in complexity through a series of major evolutionary transitions, in which formerly autonomous entities become parts of a novel higher-level entity. One intriguing feature of the higher-level […]
Posted inOrigin & Evolution of Life
How did Multicellularity Evolve?
The evolutionary path from unicellular life to multicellularity is varied, but all lead to complex organisms In the beginning there were single cells. Today, many millions of years later, most […]
Posted inOrigin & Evolution of Life
Evolution can Select for Evolvability
Evolution does not operate with a goal in mind; it does not have foresight. But organisms that have a greater capacity to evolve may fare better in rapidly changing environments. […]
Posted inBiophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Press Release
The Antiquity of Metalloenzymes
Astrobiologists funded in part by the NASA Astrobiology Institute have uncovered new information about the role of metalloenzymes in the origins of life. Metalloenzymes are enzymes where metals act as […]
Posted inGaia - Planetary Perspectives, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Nomenclature, Systematics, Natural History, Origin & Evolution of Life, Press Release
Untangling The Tree of Life on Earth
Two recent high-profile phylogenetic studies reached conflicting conclusions about whether snail’s closest relatives are bivalves or an enigmatic group called tusk shells. Vanderbilt phylogeneticists suggest that the cause of this […]