Life on Earth had to begin somewhere, and scientists think that “somewhere” is LUCA—or the Last Universal Common Ancestor.

So why do so many life-forms breathe oxygen? There are probably thousands of kinds of metabolisms, or chemical processes that ...

Most prokaryotes carry a small amount of genetic material in the form of a single molecule, or chromosome, of circular DNA. The DNA in prokaryotes is contained in a central area of the cell called ...

In contrast with cellular life-forms — which all employ the same ... F. Archaea and the prokaryote-to-eukaryote transition. Microbiology and Molecular Biology Reviews 61, 456–502 (1997 ...

Prokaryotes are little more than tiny bags ... All complex multicellular life forms – that is to say, pretty much every living thing you can see around you, and more besides – are eukaryotes.

“This should have a major effect on textbook treatment of these subjects.” Since the late 1980s, all life forms have been split into three groups on the phylogenetic tree of life: bacteria, archaea, ...

As far as we know, ours is the only planet capable of supporting life, and it seems to have arisen in the form of something like today’s single-celled prokaryotic organisms. However, scientists ...

The team, including the Faculty of Life Sciences’ Professor James McInerney, wanted to look at the different ways in which eukaryotic and prokaryotic life evolved ... cells coming together to share ...

Further analysis also shows that this life form likely sported an early immune ... True to its name, this prokaryote-like ...

Further analysis also shows that this life form likely sported an early immune ... True to its name, this prokaryote-like ...