Scientist discover animal that does not breathe oxygen in Israel
- 4 years ago
Scientist discover animal that does not breathe oxygen
Scientists have discovered an animal that does not need oxygen to produce energy needed for its survival, a finding that changes one of science’s assumptions about the animal world.The tiny, less than 10-celled parasite Henneguya salminicola lives in salmon muscle, according to the finding published on Tuesday in the journal PNAS.As it evolved, the animal, which is a relative of jellyfish and corals, gave up breathing and consuming oxygen -- or became anaerobic -- to produce energy.It’s not yet clear to us how the parasite generates energy.Some other organisms like fungi, amoebas or ciliate lineages in anaerobic environments have lost the ability to breathe over time.The researchers noted that the parasite’s anaerobic nature was an accidental discovery.While assembling the Henneguya genome, Huchon found that it did not include a mitochondrial genome.
The mitochondria is the powerhouse of the cell where oxygen is captured to make energy, so its absence indicated that the animal was not breathing oxygen.Until the new discovery, there was debate regarding the possibility that organisms belonging to the animal kingdom could survive in anaerobic environments.It may be drawing it from the surrounding fish cells, or it may have a different type of respiration such as oxygen-free breathing, which typically characterises anaerobic non-animal organisms.It is generally thought that during evolution, organisms become more and more complex, and that simple single-celled or few-celled organisms are the ancestors of complex organisms.
Scientists have discovered an animal that does not need oxygen to produce energy needed for its survival, a finding that changes one of science’s assumptions about the animal world.The tiny, less than 10-celled parasite Henneguya salminicola lives in salmon muscle, according to the finding published on Tuesday in the journal PNAS.As it evolved, the animal, which is a relative of jellyfish and corals, gave up breathing and consuming oxygen -- or became anaerobic -- to produce energy.It’s not yet clear to us how the parasite generates energy.Some other organisms like fungi, amoebas or ciliate lineages in anaerobic environments have lost the ability to breathe over time.The researchers noted that the parasite’s anaerobic nature was an accidental discovery.While assembling the Henneguya genome, Huchon found that it did not include a mitochondrial genome.
The mitochondria is the powerhouse of the cell where oxygen is captured to make energy, so its absence indicated that the animal was not breathing oxygen.Until the new discovery, there was debate regarding the possibility that organisms belonging to the animal kingdom could survive in anaerobic environments.It may be drawing it from the surrounding fish cells, or it may have a different type of respiration such as oxygen-free breathing, which typically characterises anaerobic non-animal organisms.It is generally thought that during evolution, organisms become more and more complex, and that simple single-celled or few-celled organisms are the ancestors of complex organisms.