Oxygen metabolism in descendants of the archaeal-eukaryotic ancestor - PubMed
3 days ago
- #eukaryogenesis
- #Asgard archaea
- #aerobic respiration
- Asgard archaea, particularly Heimdallarchaeia, are the closest relatives of eukaryotes.
- 404 Asgardarchaeota metagenome-assembled genomes were obtained, including 136 new Heimdallarchaeia.
- Heimdallarchaeia are widespread in marine environments, especially in variably oxygenated coastal sediments.
- They encode proteins for an aerobic lifestyle, including electron transport chain complex IV and haem biosynthesis.
- Novel respiratory membrane-bound hydrogenases with Complex I-like subunits may enhance ATP synthesis.
- An updated model suggests hydrogen production and aerobic respiration were present in the Asgard-eukaryotic ancestor.