In prokaryotes, the DNA (chromosome) is in contact with the cellular cytoplasm and is not in a housed membrane-bound nucleus. In eukaryotes, however, the DNA takes the form of compact chromosomes ...

Prokaryotic cells, which include all bacteria and archaea, are ancient, and relatively simple compared to eukaryotic cells, which are found in fungi, plants, and animals. Scientists have long sought ...

For billions of years after the origin of life, the only living things on Earth were tiny, primitive cells resembling today’s bacteria. But then, more than 1.5 billion years ago, something remarkable ...

All modern organisms fall into two classes, eukaryotes and prokaryotes. Eukaryotes (from the Greek meaning “true kernel”) have a cell nucleus that harbours most of the cell’s genetic information and ...

CRISPR/Cas was first discovered in prokaryotes (bacteria and other single-cell organisms that lack nuclei) and scientists including Zhang's lab have long wondered whether similar systems exist in ...

In the beginning, there was boredom. Following the emergence of cellular life on earth, some 3.5 billion years ago, simple cells lacking a nucleus and other detailed internal structure dominated the ...

A new method exposes key details of the mechanism behind calcium signaling in prokaryotes for the first time. Working in a Listeria monocytogenes model, researchers from Umeå University (Sweden) led ...

From the mighty blue whale to the humble baker's yeast, scientists have barely begun to understand the vast genetic diversity among lifeforms. Of the 1.67 million known species of animal, plant, fungi ...

A new study challenges a popular scenario put forward to explain the arrival of the first eukaryotic organisms. In the beginning, there was boredom. Following the emergence of cellular life on earth, ...