Journal
NATURE
Volume 521, Issue 7551, Pages 173-+Publisher
NATURE PORTFOLIO
DOI: 10.1038/nature14447
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Funding
- Swedish Research Council (VR) [621-2009-4813]
- European Research Council (ERC) [310039-PUZZLE_CELL]
- Swedish Foundation for Strategic Research [SSF-FFL5]
- Carl Tryggers Stiftelse for Vetenskaplig Forskning
- Wenner-Gren Stiftelserna
- Marie Curie IIF [331291]
- IEF by the European Union [625521]
- H2DEEP project through the EuroMARC program
- Research Council of Norway through the Centre for Geobiology, University of Bergen
- Austrian Science Fund (FWF) [P27017]
- Austrian Science Fund (FWF) [P27017] Funding Source: Austrian Science Fund (FWF)
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The origin of the eukaryotic cell remains one of the most contentious puzzles in modern biology. Recent studies have provided support for the emergence of the eukaryotic host cell from within the archaeal domain of life, but the identity and nature of the putative archaeal ancestor remain a subject of debate. Here we describe the discovery of 'Lokiarchaeota', a novel candidate archaeal phylum, which forms a monophyletic group with eukaryotes in phylogenomic analyses, and whose genomes encode an expanded repertoire of eukaryotic signature proteins that are suggestive of sophisticated membrane remodelling capabilities. Our results provide strong support for hypotheses in which the eukaryotic host evolved from a bona fide archaeon, and demonstrate that many components that underpin eukaryote-specific features were already present in that ancestor. This provided the host with a rich genomic 'starter-kit' to support the increase in the cellular and genomic complexity that is characteristic of eukaryotes.
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