Organelle evolution: what's in a name?
Plastids are organelles derived from cyanobacterial endosymbionts and the evolutionary process that gave rise to them is well understood. Or is it? The complete genome sequence of a recently evolved photosynthetic body in Paulinella chromatophora is cause for reflection on the distinction between 'endosymbiont' and 'organelle', and how the boundaries between these terms can blur.
Keeling
Patrick J
PJ
The Canadian Institute for Advanced Research, Integrated Microbial Biodiversity Program, Department of Botany, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia V6T 1Z4, Canada. pkeeling@interchange.ubc.ca
Archibald
John M
JM
D000818:Animals; D005075:Biological Evolution; D000458:Cyanobacteria / Q000235:genetics; D056890:Eukaryota / Q000235:genetics / Q000382:microbiology*; D016680:Genome, Bacterial; D054627:Genome, Plastid; D015388:Organelles / Q000235:genetics*; D013559:Symbiosis / Q000502:physiology*