A collaborative study among Spanish researchers has unraveled the mystery behind the evolution of complex eukaryotic cells from simpler prokaryotic cells, a process critical to the emergence of multicellular life. The findings, published in PNAS, emphasize that the limitation of protein size compelled a radical shift in genetic strategy, leading to the utilization of previously overlooked non-coding DNA segments, such as introns, for essential regulatory functions. This abrupt change marks a significant evolutionary transition, illuminating previously obscure pathways in the development of complex life forms over two billion years ago.
Research led by Spanish scientists reveals that complex cells emerged from simple ones over two billion years ago, driven by the evolution of genetic regulatory processes.
The study provides a mathematical formula supporting the theory that limitations on protein size prompted a crucial genetic strategy shift in cellular evolution.
This new research illuminates what professor Jordi Bascompte calls a 'phylogenetic void'—the unexplained leap from prokaryotes to complex eukaryotes that challenges our understanding of biology.
Key genetic components, once deemed 'junk DNA', now reveal their significance in regulating essential life processes during this vital evolutionary transition.
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