A recent study published in the journal Nature has shed new light on the origins of embryonic development in animals. Researchers from the University of Geneva have discovered a single-celled organism, Chromosphaera perkinsii, that forms multicellular structures resembling animal embryos. This finding suggests that the genetic programs responsible for embryonic development may have existed before the emergence of animal life.
The discovery was made by a team led by Omaya Dudin and Marine Olivetta, who observed that C. perkinsii cells form colonies with distinct cell types, much like early stages of animal embryonic development. These colonies persist for around a third of their life cycle, a phenomenon previously unknown in unicellular organisms.
The study’s findings are significant because they challenge traditional conceptions of multicellularity and raise questions about the evolution of embryonic development. The researchers propose that either the principle of embryonic development existed before animals or that C. perkinsii evolved independently to develop similar processes.
This discovery could also shed new light on 600 million-year-old fossils that resemble embryos, potentially challenging certain scientific debates. The study provides valuable insight into the mechanisms that may have led to the transition from unicellular species to multicellular organisms.
The researchers’ findings are a testament to the importance of studying ancient organisms like C. perkinsii, which can offer clues about the origins of life on Earth. As Dudin notes, “Although C. perkinsii is a unicellular species, this behavior shows that multicellular coordination and differentiation processes are already present in the species, well before the first animals appeared on Earth.”
Source: https://phys.org/news/2024-11-ancient-unicellular-embryonic-prior-animals.html