In the study, researchers observed that Chromosphaera perkinsi forms multi-cellular colonies that resemble the early stages of animal embryo development, even though it is a single-celled organism.
This finding suggests that the genetic processes responsible for embryonic development existed in nature long before the emergence of complex life forms, or that these single-celled organisms independently developed mechanisms similar to those seen in multi-cellular organisms.
These results are remarkable as they open up a new understanding of how life evolved from simple single-celled organisms, like yeast and bacteria, to complex multi-cellular creatures.
Genetic analysis of cells in Chromosphaera perkinsi colonies showed intriguing similarities to animal embryos, indicating that nature had “tools” for complex genetic evolution in place long ago.
Marine Oliveta, a lab technician in the Biochemistry Department at the University of Geneva and lead author of the study, expressed her amazement, saying, “It’s astonishing that this single-celled organism allows us to look back over a billion years, where it seems the genetic programs associated with complex multi-cellular development already existed.”
Answering the Age-Old Question
So, it can be said that the “egg” indeed existed before the “chicken.” This discovery suggests that the genetic mechanisms required for egg development were present long before multi-cellular animals, including chickens, appeared. This result provides a new scientific answer to a question that has intrigued humanity for ages.