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Credit: The University of Queensland
Scientists now better understand early bacterial evolution, thanks to new research featuring University of Queensland researchers.
Bacteria comprise a very diverse domain of single-celled organisms that are thought to have evolved from a common ancestor that lived more than three billion years ago.
Professor Phil Hugenholtz, from the Australian Centre for Ecogenomics in UQ s School of Chemistry and Molecular Biosciences, said the root of the bacterial tree, which would reveal the nature of the last common ancestor, is not agreed upon. There s great debate about the root of this bacterial tree of life and indeed whether bacterial evolution should even be described as a tree has been contested, Professor Hugenholtz said.