How Microbes Got Their Crawl

The New York Times • February 18, 2026 • general

Key Points:

New studies are uncovering transitional microbes that provide insights into the evolution of complex eukaryotic cells from simpler prokaryotic cells around two billion years ago.
Complex eukaryotic cells differ significantly from simple prokaryotes like E. coli, possessing specialized compartments such as nuclei and mitochondria, as well as internal structural filaments.
Eukaryotes, which include animals, plants, and fungi, emerged between 2.5 and two billion years ago, while prokaryotes appeared over four billion years ago.
Research in the 1990s revealed that mitochondria contain genes linked to oxygen-using bacteria, supporting the theory that eukaryotes evolved by engulfing these bacteria to