Skip to main content

Endosymbiosis and the Origin of Eukaryotes

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Evolution from the Galapagos

Part of the book series: Social and Ecological Interactions in the Galapagos Islands ((SESGI,volume 2))

Abstract

Search for the term “endosymbiosis” in the Web of Science or the Zoological Record, and you will find a long list of some of the most intriguing and intellectually stimulating articles being published these days. The phenomenon of cells living inside other cells has had an enormous impact on the evolution of life. This has occurred on the macroscale with the endosymbiotic origin of numerous phyla of eukaryotes including the primary photoendosymbiotic green and red algae, and the numerous photosynthetic lineages that evolved by incorporating these algae into their cells, including brown algae, diatoms, and dinoflagellates. This process not only introduced new genes to the eukaryotic genome, but also altered that genome in novel ways.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Subscribe and save

Springer+ Basic
$34.99 /Month
  • Get 10 units per month
  • Download Article/Chapter or eBook
  • 1 Unit = 1 Article or 1 Chapter
  • Cancel anytime
Subscribe now

Buy Now

Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 84.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Alberts B, Johnson A, Lewis J, Raff M, Roberts K, Walter P (2002) Molecular biology of the cell, 4th edn. Garland Science, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Canefield DE (1998) A new model for Proteozoic ocean chemistry. Nature 396:450–453

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cavalier-Smith T (1983) Endosymbiotic origin of the mitochondrial envelope. In Schwemmler W, Schenck HEA (ed) Endocytobiology II. de Gruyter, Berlin, pp 265–279

    Google Scholar 

  • Dolan MF (2002) Speciation of termite gut protists: the role of bacterial symbionts. Inter Microbiol 4:203–208

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dolan MF (2011) The wood-eating termite hindgut: diverse cellular symbioses in a microoxic to anoxic environment. In Seckbach J et al. (ed) Anoxia. Springer, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Hampl V, Silberman JD, Stechmann A, Diaz-Triviño S, Johnson PJ, Roger AJ (2008) Genetic evidence for a mitochondriate ancestry in the ‘amitochondriate’ flagellate Trimastix pyriformis. PLoS One 3(1):e1383

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hongoh Y, Sharma VK, Prakash T, Noda S, Toh H, Taylor TD, Kudo T, Sakaki Y, Toyoda A, Hattori M, Ohkuma M (2008) Genome of an endosymbiont coupling N2 fixation to cellulolysis within in protist cells in termite gut. Science 322:1108–1109

    Google Scholar 

  • Lindmark DG, Müller M (1973) Hydrogenosome, a cytoplasmic organelle of the anaerobic flagellate Tritrichomonas foetus, and its role in pyruvate metabolism. J Bio Chem 248:7724–7728

    Google Scholar 

  • Llyod AH, Timmis JN (2011) The origin and characterization of new nuclear genes originating from a cytoplasmic organellar genome. Mol Biol Evol 7:2019–2028

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mentel M, Martin W (2008) Energy metabolism among eukaryotic anaerobes in light of Proterozoic ocean chemistry. Philos Trans R Soc B 363:2717–2729

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Searcy D (2003) Metabolic integration during the evolutionary origin of mitochondria. Cell Res 13:229–238

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Searcy DG (2006) Rapid hydrogen sulfide consumption by Tetrahymena pyriformis and its implications for the origin of mitochondria. Eur J Protistol 42:221–231

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Searcy DG, Lee SH (1998) Sulfur reduction by human erythrocytes. J Exp Zoolog 282:310–322

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Traba J, Satrústegui J, del Arco (2011) Adenine nucleotide transporters in organelles: novel genes and functions. Cell Mol Life Sci 68:1183–1206

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Van der Giezen M (2011) Mitochondria and the rise of eukaryotes. BioScience 61:594–601

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yong R, Searcy DG (2001) Sulfide oxidation coupled to ATP synthesis in chicken liver mitochondria. Comp Biochem Physiol B Biochem Mol Biol 129:129–137

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Michael F. Dolan .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2013 Springer Science+Business Media New York

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Dolan, M. (2013). Endosymbiosis and the Origin of Eukaryotes. In: Trueba, G., Montúfar, C. (eds) Evolution from the Galapagos. Social and Ecological Interactions in the Galapagos Islands, vol 2. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-6732-8_9

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics