Amazing stuff! We do not even know the whole tree of life yet, but some are trying to convince us about the Sixth Extinction! 😊
"... Scientists have discovered a completely new branch on the tree of life. This “supergroup” contains an incredibly diverse range of predatory microbes that are extremely different genetically from any other form of life on Earth. ...
Members of the Provora supergroup are tiny organisms that the team describes as the “lions of the microbial world.” That’s because they prey upon other microbes, and within their ecosystem they’re relatively rare. The supergroup is further divided into two clades – the “nibblerids,” which use tooth-like structures to nibble chunks off their prey, and the “nebulids,” which engulf their prey whole. ..."
Members of the Provora supergroup are tiny organisms that the team describes as the “lions of the microbial world.” That’s because they prey upon other microbes, and within their ecosystem they’re relatively rare. The supergroup is further divided into two clades – the “nibblerids,” which use tooth-like structures to nibble chunks off their prey, and the “nebulids,” which engulf their prey whole. ..."
From the abstract:
"Molecular phylogenetics of microbial eukaryotes has reshaped the tree of life by establishing broad taxonomic divisions, termed supergroups, that supersede the traditional kingdoms of animals, fungi and plants, and encompass a much greater breadth of eukaryotic diversity. The vast majority of newly discovered species fall into a small number of known supergroups. Recently, however, a handful of species with no clear relationship to other supergroups have been described, raising questions about the nature and degree of undiscovered diversity, and exposing the limitations of strictly molecular-based exploration. Here we report ten previously undescribed strains of microbial predators isolated through culture that collectively form a diverse new supergroup of eukaryotes, termed Provora. The Provora supergroup is genetically, morphologically and behaviourally distinct from other eukaryotes, and comprises two divergent clades of predators—Nebulidia and Nibbleridia—that are superficially similar to each other, but differ fundamentally in ultrastructure, behaviour and gene content. These predators are globally distributed in marine and freshwater environments, but are numerically rare and have consequently been overlooked by molecular-diversity surveys. In the age of high-throughput analyses, investigation of eukaryotic diversity through culture remains indispensable for the discovery of rare but ecologically and evolutionarily important eukaryotes."
New branch on tree of life includes ‘lions of the microbial world’ There’s a new branch on the tree of life and it’s made up of predators that nibble their prey to death.
Microbial predators form a new supergroup of eukaryotes (no public access)
A microscope image of a Provoran, a micro-organism from the newly discovered supergroup
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