|
 |
| ORIGIN OF LIFE |
|
| Year : 2011 | Volume
: 4
| Issue : 10 | Page : 61-64 |
|
|
The Endosymbiotic Theory
Cleodie Swire
The King's School, Canterbury, United Kingdom
| Date of Web Publication | 24-Jan-2012 |
Correspondence Address:
Cleodie Swire
The King's School, Canterbury
United Kingdom
DOI: 10.4103/0974-6102.92200
 Definitions | |  |
Prokaryote - Organism with cells without a true nucleus or other membrane-bound organelles
Eukaryote - Organism whose cell(s) contain(s) a distinct, membrane-bound nucleus
Autotroph - An organism that can make its own food
Heterotroph - An organism that must obtain ready-made food
Endocytosis - A process in which a cell takes in materials by engulfing them and fusing them with its membrane, as shown in [Figure 1] | Figure 1: A diagram showing endocytosis [available from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File: Average_prokaryote_cell-_en.svg]
Click here to view |
Aerobic - Organism that requires oxygen for survival
Anaerobic - Organism that can function without oxygen
Symbiosis - Two different organisms benefit from living and working together
Endosymbiosis - One organism lives inside another
Mitochondrion - Organelle where aerobic respiration occurs within the cell
Carbohydrate + Oxygen → Carbon dioxide + Water + Energy
Chloroplast - Organelle where photosynthesis occurs in plant cells
Carbon dioxide + Water (with sunlight and chlorophyll) → Carbohydrate + Oxygen
[Figure 2] shows that mitochondria and chloroplasts are very similar to prokaryotic cells; these observations lead to The Endosymbiotic Theory. | Figure 2: A table comparing various characteristics of different cells and cell types
Click here to view |
| Theory | | |
Researchers comparing the structures of prokaryotes and cell organelles, as shown in [Figure 2], came to the conclusion that organelles such as mitochondria and chloroplasts had originally been bacteria that were taken into larger bacteria by endocytosis and not digested. The cells would have had a mutually beneficial (symbiotic) relationship. The ingested cells developed into organelles, such as mitochondria and chloroplasts, which now cannot live outside the host cell.
| Mitochondria | | |
Aerobic bacteria were taken in by anaerobic bacteria. The enveloped bacteria would have used the oxygen from the air (which was useless to its host) to provide far more adenosine triphosphate (ATP) (useful energy) than the host could produce on its own, while the host cell would provide materials to respire, protection, and a steady environment.
| Chloroplasts | | |
Autotrophic photosynthetic bacteria cells were taken in by the heterotrophic prokaryote cells. The ingested cell would continue to provide glucose and oxygen (which could be used by the mitochondria as endocytosis of the photosynthetic prokaryote occurred after the endocytosis of aerobic cells) by photosynthesis. The host cell would provide carbon dioxide and nitrogen for the engulfed cell, as well as protecting it.
Over time, both cells lost their ability to survive without each other.
| Proof | | |
Similarities to bacteria
[Figure 2] shows that mitochondria and chloroplasts have many similarities to prokaryotic bacteria. They are of a similar size and have 70S ribosomes, as opposed to the 80S ribosomes found in eukaryotic cells.
These cells all divide by binary fission, as shown in [Figure 3]. | Figure 3: A diagram showing binary fission of a prokaryotic cell [available from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File: Binary_fission.svg]
Click here to view |
DNA
The organelles have their own DNA, separate to the DNA found in the nucleus of the cell, which they use to produce enzymes and proteins to aid their function. This was predicted by the researchers, and was later proved to be true for mitochondria and chloroplasts.
All of these likenesses suggest that mitochondria and chloroplasts developed from prokaryotes.
Double outer membranes
Mitochondrion and chloroplasts have double outer membranes - the inner layer came from the engulfed cell and the outer membrane from the host cell during endocytosis.
Replication
Mitochondrion and chloroplasts can only arise from pre-existing organelles - the DNA that codes for them is not found in the nucleus of the cell, but in naked loops of DNA within the organelles themselves. This suggests that these organelles were originally separate cells that needed to replicate themselves.
Fossil record [Figure 4]
Fossil evidence shows that bacteria were present 3.8 billion years ago, when there was no oxygen in the atmosphere and all organisms were anaerobic.
Photosynthetic bacteria appeared about 3.2 billion years ago, producing oxygen. As the oxygen levels increased, the anaerobic organisms began to die out as oxygen is toxic to most cells (even ours!).
Organisms that could respire aerobically developed about 2.5 billion years ago.
This evidence suggests that the 'ancestors' to the mitochondria and chloroplasts developed outside the cell, and later merged with other larger prokaryotes, leading to the development of eukaryotes.
Uses
The discoveries regarding the origins of the mitochondria and chloroplasts have led to several scientific applications.
| History of Evolution | | |
The DNA found in mitochondria (mtDNA) is passed directly from mother to child, and changes much more slowly than other types of DNA, providing information about evolutionary history. This can be used to determine how closely related two species are to one another and migration patterns as shown in [Figure 5]. | Figure 5: A graph showing human migration patterns, created by studying mtDNA. The letters denote the different groups of mtDNA [available from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File: Migration_map4.png]
Click here to view |
| Astrobiology | | |
Organisms called archaebacteria, which live in the most extreme habitats on Earth, have been studied as they are the organism believed to be most like the bacteria that inhabited the Earth billions of years ago.
They now inhabit salt ponds and boiling hot springs. As they live in places previously assumed to be unsuitable for life, they are being studied as they may provide clues about extra-terrestrial life. There has been some research done suggesting that the archaebacteria could survive space travel by meteorite, so there is potential for life on other planets.
| Researcher | | |
The Endosymbiotic Theory of eukaryote evolution was first suggested by Dr. Lynn Margulis [Figure 6] in the 1960s, and officially in her book, 'Symbiosis in Cell Evolution' in 1981. Her ideas were initially ridiculed by her fellow biologists, but through research and persistence her theory was eventually accepted and is now regarded as the most credible explanation of eukaryote evolution. | Figure 6: Dr. Lynn Margulis [available from http://en.wikipedia.org/ wiki/File: Lynn_Margulis.jpg]
Click here to view |
She is best known for her theory of symbiogenesis, which expanded on the aspect of The Endosymbiotic Theory in which the relationship between the prokaryotic cells becomes so strong that the two grew to be dependent on one another. Margulis suggested that this process may have also occurred at other times during evolution. This theory challenges Darwin's idea that mutations occur by genes being passed down from parents to offspring, rather than the genetic material of unrelated organisms being brought together.
| Authors | | |
 Cleodie Swire is doing Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Further Maths and Spanish at AS Level, and has already taken French. She is currently at The King's School Canterbury, and hopes to do Medicine at University. She enjoys doing sport - especially hockey - and travelling.
How to cite this article:
Swire C. The Endosymbiotic Theory. Young Scientists J 2011;4:61-4 |
[Figure 1], [Figure 2], [Figure 3], [Figure 4], [Figure 5], [Figure 6]
|
