Unicellular ancestor reveals ancient origins of egg formation
Research on the prehistoric organism Chromosphaera perkinsii published in "Nature" suggests that eggs appeared on Earth over a billion years ago, long before the evolution of the first animals.
Scientists from the University of Geneva discovered that the unicellular organism Chromosphaera perkinsii, found in Hawaii, formed multicellular structures resembling animal embryos.
This organism appeared on Earth at least a billion years ago and during cell division produced forms resembling eggs, reports "Independent".
Though Chromosphaera perkinsii is a unicellular species, this behaviour shows that multicellular coordination and differentiation processes are already present in the species, well before the first animals appeared on Earth, said the lead author of the study, Omaya Dudin, quoted by "Independent".
The egg or the chicken? scientists have no doubts
Scientists observed that after reaching its maximum size, C. perkinsii divided without further growth, forming multicellular colonies resembling the early embryonic stages of animals. These colonies, consisting of different types of cells, persisted for about one-third of the organism's life cycle.
The discovery suggests that the genetic tools needed to "create eggs" existed long before nature "invented chickens. "It’s fascinating, a species discovered very recently allows us to go back in time more than a billion years," added Marine Olivetta, a study co-author.
Scientists hope that further research on Chromosphaera perkinsii will help better understand the mechanisms behind the transition from unicellular organisms to multicellular forms.
