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The energetics of genome complexity

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  • Nick Lane

    (Evolution and Environment, University College London)

  • William Martin

    (Institut für Botanik III Heinrich-Heine-Universität, Düsseldorf, Universitätsstrasse 1)

Abstract

The bioenergetics of complexity Since the first eukaryotic cell arose from prokaryotes about four billion years ago, prokaryotes have shown little tendency to evolve greater complexity. By contrast, eukaryotic (nucleated) cells form the basis of all complex multicellular life. All eukaryotes either have mitochondria, or once had them and later lost them, placing the origin of the mitochondrion and the eukaryotic cell as perhaps the same event. Why was it so advantageous? Nick Lane and William Martin suggest that, by enabling oxidative phosphorylation across a wide area of internal membranes, mitochondrial genes facilitated a 200,000-fold expansion in the number of genes that can be expressed, vastly increasing the repertoire of novel protein folds, protein interactions and regulatory cascades.

Suggested Citation

  • Nick Lane & William Martin, 2010. "The energetics of genome complexity," Nature, Nature, vol. 467(7318), pages 929-934, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:nature:v:467:y:2010:i:7318:d:10.1038_nature09486
    DOI: 10.1038/nature09486
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    Cited by:

    1. Fix, Blair, 2020. "Economic Development and the Death of the Free Market," Working Papers on Capital as Power 2020/01, Capital As Power - Toward a New Cosmology of Capitalism.
    2. Fix, Blair, 2020. "Economic Development and the Death of the Free Market," SocArXiv g86am, Center for Open Science.
    3. Blair Fix, 2022. "Economic development and the death of the free market," Evolutionary and Institutional Economics Review, Springer, vol. 19(1), pages 1-46, April.
    4. Samim Sharifi & Prerana Chaudhari & Asya Martirosyan & Alexander Otto Eberhardt & Finja Witt & André Gollowitzer & Lisa Lange & Yvonne Woitzat & Eberechukwu Maryann Okoli & Huahui Li & Norman Rahnis &, 2024. "Reducing the metabolic burden of rRNA synthesis promotes healthy longevity in Caenorhabditis elegans," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-18, December.
    5. Fix, Blair, 2016. "Energy and Institution Size," Working Papers on Capital as Power 2016/04, Capital As Power - Toward a New Cosmology of Capitalism.
    6. Blair Fix, 2017. "Energy and institution size," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 12(2), pages 1-22, February.

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