KAHIBARO
- 1. Biology as the Science of Living Organisms ›
- 2. Basic Building Blocks of Life ›
- 3. Metabolism and Energy Conversion ›
- 4. Control, Regulation, and Information Processing ›
- 5. Reproduction, Growth, Development ›
- 6. Genetics ›
- 7. Disease and Health ›
- 8. Evolution and Biological Diversity ›
- 9. Behavioral Biology ›
- 10. Ecology ›
8.4. Symbiogenesis
Table of Contents
Symbiogenesis deals with the idea that new biological structures, species, or higher-level groups can arise through long-term, intimate cooperation between different organisms. Instead of evolution occurring only through gradual change within a single lineage, symbiogenesis emphasizes that merging and integration of formerly independent organisms can be a powerful evolutionary force.
In this chapter, the focus is on how “living together” can fundamentally shape the origin and evolution of life, especially by forming new, more complex units from simpler partners. The later subsections will consider:
- how widespread and varied coexistence among organisms is (“Life Means Living Together”),
- how different kinds of interactions (competition, symbiosis, commensalism, antibiosis) can have evolutionary consequences,
- and how one particularly far‑reaching form of symbiogenesis — the endosymbiotic origin of eukaryotic cells from prokaryotic ancestors — likely created an entirely new level of cellular complexity.
Symbiogenesis thus connects ecology (interactions among organisms) with evolutionary biology (origin of new forms) and helps explain why cooperation, alongside competition, is central to the history of life.
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8.3.2. Further Developments and Alternative Theories
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8.4.1. Life Means Living Together
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- ☰ 1. Biology as the Science of Living Organisms
- ☰ 1.1. The Biological Age
- ☰ 1.1.1. Biology Determines Our Lives
- ☰ 1.1.2. Characteristics of Living Things
- ☰ 1.1.3. Organization of the Living
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- ☰ 1.2. The Development of Biology as a Science
- ☰ 1.2.1. Beginnings in Antiquity
- ☰ 1.2.2. A New Beginning in the Renaissance
- ☰ 1.2.3. The Enlightenment
- ☰ 1.2.4. Recording Biological Diversity
- ☰ 1.2.5. Vitalism and Mechanism
- ☰ 1.2.6. Evolutionary Theory and Its Consequences
- ☰ 1.2.7. Molecular Foundations
- ☰ 1.2.8. Global Interrelationships and the Gaia Hypothesis
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- ☰ 1.3. Biological Sciences
- ☰ 1.3.1. Subdisciplines of the Biological Sciences
- ☰ 1.3.2. Ways of Thinking and Working in Biology
- ☰ 1.3.2.1. Searching for, Evaluating, Processing, and Presenting Information
- ☰ 1.3.2.2. Induction and Deduction
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- ☰ 1.3.3. Relationships to Other Natural Sciences
- ☰ 1.3.4. Relationships to the Humanities
- ☰ 1.3.5. Interdisciplinary Fields
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- ☰ 2. Basic Building Blocks of Life
- ☰ 2.1. Carbon as the Element of Life
- ☰ 2.1.1. The Periodic Table of the Elements
- ☰ 2.1.1.1. Types of Chemical Bonds
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- ☰ 2.1.2. Carbon as an Element
- ☰ 2.1.3. Possible Carbon Compounds
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- ☰ 2.2. Water as the Medium of Life
- ☰ 2.2.1. Properties of Water
- ☰ 2.2.2. Autoprotolysis of Water
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- ☰ 2.3. Macromolecules
- ☰ 2.3.1. Proteins and Their Structure
- ☰ 2.3.2. Carbohydrates
- ☰ 2.3.2.1. Monosaccharides
- ☰ 2.3.2.2. Disaccharides
- ☰ 2.3.2.3. Polysaccharides
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- ☰ 2.3.3. Lipids
- ☰ 2.3.4. Nucleic Acids
- ☰ 2.3.5. Other Important Molecules
- ☰ 2.3.5.1. Pyrrole Compounds
- ☰ 2.3.5.2. Terpenes – Isoprenoids
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- ☰ 2.4. Cells and Cell Components
- ☰ 2.4.1. The Cell as the Basic Unit of Life
- ☰ 2.4.2. Basic Structures: Membrane, Fibril, Granum
- ☰ 2.4.3. The Prokaryotic Cell (Procyte)
- ☰ 2.4.4. The Eukaryotic Cell (Eucyte): The Cell of Eukaryotes
- ☰ 2.4.5. Viruses, Viroids, and Prions
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- ☰ 2.5. From Cells to Tissues and Organs
- ☰ 2.5.1. Nuclear and Cell Division
- ☰ 2.5.2. Unicellular and Multicellular Organisms
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- ☰ 3. Metabolism and Energy Conversion
- ☰ 3.1. Energy Conversion in Metabolic Processes
- ☰ 3.1.1. Metabolic Pathways
- ☰ 3.1.2. Organisms Live on Free Energy
- ☰ 3.1.2.1. Thermodynamic Equilibrium and Free Energy
- ☰ 3.1.2.2. Steady State
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- ☰ 3.1.3. ATP: Energy Carrier in Cells or Organisms
- ☰ 3.1.3.1. ATP Regeneration
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- ☰ 3.1.4. Determining Energy Conversion
- ☰ 3.1.4.1. Metabolic Rate
- ☰ 3.1.4.2. Direct Calorimetry
- ☰ 3.1.4.3. Indirect Calorimetry (Respirometry)
- ☰ 3.1.4.4. Basal Metabolic Rate and Performance Metabolism
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- ☰ 3.2. Enzymes as Catalysts in the Organism
- ☰ 3.2.1. Course of Enzymatic Reactions
- ☰ 3.2.2. Structure and Function of Enzymes
- ☰ 3.2.3. Enzyme Activity
- ☰ 3.2.3.1. Influence of Temperature
- ☰ 3.2.3.2. Influence of pH
- ☰ 3.2.3.3. Concentration
- ☰ 3.2.3.4. Enzyme Regulation
- ☰ 3.2.3.5. Importance of Enzymes
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- ☰ 3.3. Anabolic Metabolism
- ☰ 3.3.1. Photosynthesis
- ☰ 3.3.1.1. Location of Photosynthesis: Fine Structure of Chloroplasts
- ☰ 3.3.1.2. Structure of the Photosystems
- ☰ 3.3.1.3. Process of Photosynthesis: Light-Dependent Reactions
- ☰ 3.3.1.4. Light-Independent Reactions (Dark Reaction, Calvin Cycle)
- ☰ 3.3.1.5. Sequence of the Light-Dependent Reactions
- ☰ 3.3.1.6. Factors Influencing Photosynthesis
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- ☰ 3.3.2. Chemolithoautotrophy (Chemosynthesis)
- ☰ 3.3.3. Storage of Chemical Energy
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- ☰ 3.4. Catabolic Metabolism
- ☰ 3.4.1. Cellular Respiration
- ☰ 3.4.1.1. Glycolysis
- ☰ 3.4.1.2. Transport of Pyruvate and Formation of Acetyl-CoA
- ☰ 3.4.1.3. Citric Acid Cycle (Krebs Cycle)
- ☰ 3.4.1.4. Electron Transport Chain
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- ☰ 3.4.2. Fermentation as Energy Release Without Oxygen
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- ☰ 3.5. Transport Processes in Plants
- ☰ 3.5.1. Basic Components of the Plant
- ☰ 3.5.2. Uptake of Water and Mineral Salts
- ☰ 3.5.3. Water and Ion Transport in the Stem
- ☰ 3.5.4. Regulation of Transpiration
- ☰ 3.5.5. Transport of Organic Substances
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- ☰ 3.6. Digestion, Respiration, and Transport in Animals
- ☰ 3.6.1. Respiration and Respiratory Organs
- ☰ 3.6.2. Heart and Circulatory System
- ☰ 3.6.2.1. Gas Exchange in Lungs and Tissues
- ☰ 3.6.2.2. Transport of Carbon Dioxide
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- ☰ 3.6.3. Excretory Organs and Excretion
- ☰ 3.6.3.1. Structure and Function of the Human Kidney
- ☰ 3.6.3.2. Formation of Urine in the Nephron
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- ☰ 4. Control, Regulation, and Information Processing
- ☰ 4.1. Excitation and Conduction
- ☰ 4.1.1. Biological Basics
- ☰ 4.1.2. Excitability and Response in Algae and Plants
- ☰ 4.1.3. Excitability of Animal Cells
- ☰ 4.1.4. Conduction of Excitation
- ☰ 4.1.5. Transmission of Excitation Between Excitable Cells
- ☰ 4.1.6. From Stimulus Reception to Response
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- ☰ 4.2. Sense Organs
- ☰ 4.2.1. Mediators Between Organism and Environment
- ☰ 4.2.2. Visual Sense
- ☰ 4.2.3. Hearing Sense
- ☰ 4.2.4. Sense of Balance
- ☰ 4.2.5. Skin Senses
- ☰ 4.2.6. Chemical Sense
- ☰ 4.2.7. Electrical Sense and Magnetic Sense
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- ☰ 4.3. Information Processing and Storage
- ☰ 4.3.1. Nervous Systems of Invertebrates
- ☰ 4.3.2. Nervous Systems of Vertebrates
- ☰ 4.3.3. Memory, Language, Consciousness
- ☰ 4.3.4. Sleep
- ☰ 4.3.5. Psychoactive Substances and Neurotoxins
- ☰ 4.3.6. Muscles and Movement
- ☰ 4.3.7. Function of Muscle Cells
- ☰ 4.3.8. Muscle Movement
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- ☰ 4.4. Hormones
- ☰ 4.4.1. The Endocrine System of Vertebrates and Humans
- ☰ 4.4.1.1. Classification of Hormones
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- ☰ 4.4.2. Coupling of Nervous and Endocrine Systems
- ☰ 4.4.3. The Endocrine System of Invertebrates
- ☰ 4.4.4. Plant Hormones
- ☰ 4.4.5. Pheromones
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- ☰ 5. Reproduction, Growth, Development
- ☰ 5.1. Reproduction
- ☰ 5.1.1. Reproduction and Nutrition
- ☰ 5.1.2. Asexual Reproduction
- ☰ 5.1.3. Sexual Reproduction
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- ☰ 5.2. Lower Organisms
- ☰ 5.2.1. Prokaryotes
- ☰ 5.2.2. Protists
- ☰ 5.2.3. Fungi
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- ☰ 5.3. Plants
- ☰ 5.3.1. Growth and Differentiation
- ☰ 5.3.2. Reproduction Techniques
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- ☰ 5.4. Animals and Humans
- ☰ 5.4.1. Embryonic Development in Animals
- ☰ 5.4.2. Embryonic Development in Humans
- ☰ 5.4.3. Developmental Disorders and Reproductive Technologies
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- ☰ 6. Genetics
- ☰ 6.1. Molecular Foundations of Heredity
- ☰ 6.1.1. Nucleic Acids as Carriers of Genetic Information
- ☰ 6.1.1.1. Structure of DNA
- ☰ 6.1.1.2. Genetic Code
- ☰ 6.1.1.3. Ribonucleic Acid (RNA)
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- ☰ 6.1.2. Identical Replicators
- ☰ 6.1.3. From Gene to Protein
- ☰ 6.1.3.1. Protein Biosynthesis in Prokaryotes and Eukaryotes
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- ☰ 6.1.4. Regulation of Gene Activity
- ☰ 6.1.4.1. Transcriptional Control in Prokaryotes
- ☰ 6.1.4.2. Regulation of Gene Activity in Eukaryotes
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- ☰ 6.1.5. Modification
- ☰ 6.1.5.1. Continuous Variation
- ☰ 6.1.5.2. Discontinuous Variation
- ☰ 6.1.5.3. Modificatory (Phenotypic) Sex Determination
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- ☰ 6.1.6. Mutation
- ☰ 6.1.6.1. Causes of Mutations
- ☰ 6.1.6.2. Types of Mutations
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- ☰ 6.2. Inheritance Rules and Their Applications
- ☰ 6.2.1. Mendelian Laws of Inheritance
- ☰ 6.2.1.1. Mendel’s Crossbreeding Experiments
- ☰ 6.2.1.2. Dominant – Recessive – Intermediate
- ☰ 6.2.1.3. Mendelian Terminology
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- ☰ 6.2.2. Chromosome Theory of Inheritance
- ☰ 6.2.2.1. Gene Linkage
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- ☰ 6.2.3. Inheritance in Humans
- ☰ 6.2.3.1. Genotypic Sex Determination in Humans
- ☰ 6.2.3.2. Barr Body and Lyon Hypothesis
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- ☰ 6.2.4. Gene Mutations in Humans
- ☰ 6.2.4.1. X-linked Recessive Genetic Disorders
- ☰ 6.2.4.2. Autosomal Genetic Disorders
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- ☰ 6.2.5. Chromosomal Aberrations in Humans
- ☰ 6.2.5.1. Sex Chromosome Aberrations in Humans
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- ☰ 6.3. Genetic Engineering
- ☰ 6.3.1. Basics of Genetic Engineering
- ☰ 6.3.1.1. Selected Aspects of Viral and Bacterial Genetics
- ☰ 6.3.1.2. Bacteriophages
- ☰ 6.3.1.3. Retroviruses Contradict the Central Dogma
- ☰ 6.3.1.4. Bacteria
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- ☰ 6.3.2. Methods of Investigation
- ☰ 6.3.2.1. Restriction Enzymes and Ligases
- ☰ 6.3.2.2. Gel Electrophoresis
- ☰ 6.3.2.3. Hybridization
- ☰ 6.3.2.4. Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR)
- ☰ 6.3.2.5. DNA Sequencing
- ☰ 6.3.2.6. Transfer of Foreign Genetic Material
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- ☰ 6.3.3. Applications of Genetics
- ☰ 6.3.4. Gene Mapping
- ☰ 6.3.5. Gene Therapy
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- ☰ 7. Disease and Health
- ☰ 7.1. Terms and Definitions
- ☰ 7.1.1. Health
- ☰ 7.1.2. Disease
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- ☰ 7.2. Infectious Diseases in Humans
- ☰ 7.2.1. Transmission and Course of Infectious Diseases
- ☰ 7.2.2. Subviral Structures as Pathogens
- ☰ 7.2.2.1. Viroids
- ☰ 7.2.2.2. Prions
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- ☰ 7.2.3. Viruses as Pathogens
- ☰ 7.2.3.1. Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)
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- ☰ 7.2.4. Bacteria as Pathogens
- ☰ 7.2.4.1. Plague Pathogen
- ☰ 7.2.4.2. Salmonella
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- ☰ 7.2.5. Fungi as Pathogens
- ☰ 7.2.5.1. Yeasts
- ☰ 7.2.5.2. Dermatophytes
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- ☰ 7.2.6. Protists as Pathogens
- ☰ 7.2.6.1. Malaria Pathogen
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- ☰ 7.2.7. Animals as Pathogens
- ☰ 7.2.7.1. Pinworm (Enterobius vermicularis)
- ☰ 7.2.7.2. Mites as Agents of Scabies
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- ☰ 7.3. Immunobiology
- ☰ 7.3.1. Nonspecific Immune Response
- ☰ 7.3.1.1. Passive Resistance: General Defense
- ☰ 7.3.1.2. Active Resistance
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- ☰ 7.3.2. Specific Immune Response
- ☰ 7.3.2.1. Antibodies
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- ☰ 7.3.3. Active and Passive Immunization
- ☰ 7.3.3.1. Active Immunization
- ☰ 7.3.3.2. Passive Immunization
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- ☰ 7.3.4. Autoimmune Diseases
- ☰ 7.3.5. Allergies
- ☰ 7.3.5.1. Type I Allergies: Immediate Type
- ☰ 7.3.5.2. Prophylaxis and Therapy of Allergies
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- ☰ 7.4. Plant Defense Systems
- ☰ 7.4.1. Defense Mechanisms of Plants
- ☰ 7.4.2. Economic Applications
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- ☰ 8. Evolution and Biological Diversity
- ☰ 8.1. History of Evolutionary Thought
- ☰ 8.1.1. Evolutionary Theories Through Time
- ☰ 8.1.1.1. Creation Myths
- ☰ 8.1.1.2. Ancient Natural Philosophy
- ☰ 8.1.1.3. Early Scientific Approaches to Descent
- ☰ 8.1.1.4. Mechanism and Vitalism
- ☰ 8.1.1.5. Pioneers of Scientific Evolutionary Theory
- ☰ 8.1.1.6. Darwin’s Theory of Evolution
- ☰ 8.1.1.7. Comparison of Lamarck’s and Darwin’s Theories
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- ☰ 8.1.2. Ideas on the Origin of Life
- ☰ 8.1.2.1. The “RNA World”
- ☰ 8.1.2.2. The Hypercycle Model
- ☰ 8.1.2.3. Extraterrestrial Origin of Life
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- ☰ 8.2. Evidence for the Evolution of Organisms
- ☰ 8.2.1. Common Origin of All Living Things
- ☰ 8.2.2. Fossils as Evidence for Evolution
- ☰ 8.2.2.1. General Findings from the Fossil Record
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- ☰ 8.2.3. Transitional Forms
- ☰ 8.2.4. Evidence from Ontogeny
- ☰ 8.2.5. Homology and Analogy
- ☰ 8.2.5.1. Criterion of Position
- ☰ 8.2.5.2. Criterion of Specific Quality
- ☰ 8.2.5.3. Criterion of Intermediate Forms (Continuity)
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- ☰ 8.2.6. Rudimentary Organs and Atavisms
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- ☰ 8.3. Evolutionary Factors and Their Effects
- ☰ 8.3.1. The Synthetic Theory of Evolution
- ☰ 8.3.1.1. Mutation and Recombination
- ☰ 8.3.1.2. Adaptive Selection
- ☰ 8.3.1.3. Genetic Drift
- ☰ 8.3.1.4. Isolation and Speciation
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- ☰ 8.3.2. Further Developments and Alternative Theories
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- ☰ 8.4. Symbiogenesis
- ☰ 8.4.1. Life Means Living Together
- ☰ 8.4.2. Competition – Symbiosis – Commensalism – Antibiosis
- ☰ 8.4.3. Origin of Eukaryotes from Prokaryotes (Endosymbiotic Theory)
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- ☰ 8.5. Phylogeny and the Diversity of Life
- ☰ 8.5.1. Patterns of Evolution
- ☰ 8.5.2. Phylogenetic Research
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- ☰ 8.6. Human Evolution
- ☰ 8.6.1. Relationships Among Primates
- ☰ 8.6.1.1. The Position of Humans in the Natural System
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- ☰ 8.6.2. Human Fossil Record
- ☰ 8.6.3. Do Human Races Exist?
- ☰ 8.6.3.1. Origin of Modern Humans
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- ☰ 8.6.4. Cognitive and Cultural Evolution
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- ☰ 8.7. Classification of Diversity (Systematics)
- ☰ 8.7.1. Domain Archaea
- ☰ 8.7.2. Domain Bacteria
- ☰ 8.7.3. Domain Eukarya
- ☰ 8.7.3.1. 1st Kingdom: Protista
- ☰ 8.7.3.2. 2nd Kingdom: Plantae
- ☰ 8.7.3.3. 3rd Kingdom: Fungi
- ☰ 8.7.3.4. 4th Kingdom: Animalia
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- ☰ 9. Behavioral Biology
- ☰ 9.1. Goals and Methods of Behavioral Biology
- ☰ 9.1.1. Subfields of Behavioral Biology
- ☰ 9.1.2. Goals of Behavioral Biology
- ☰ 9.1.3. Methods of Behavior Recording and Analysis
- ☰ 9.1.4. Applied Behavioral Research
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- ☰ 9.2. Development of Behavior
- ☰ 9.2.1. Ontogeny and Individual Development of Behavior
- ☰ 9.2.2. Behavior of Juvenile Animals
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- ☰ 9.3. Mechanisms of Behavior
- ☰ 9.3.1. Coordination of Movements
- ☰ 9.3.2. Innate Behavior
- ☰ 9.3.3. Learned Behavior
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- ☰ 9.4. Adaptiveness of Behavior
- ☰ 9.4.1. Adaptation Strategies
- ☰ 9.4.2. Communication
- ☰ 9.4.3. Social Structures and Forms of Organization
- ☰ 9.4.4. Conflict Behavior
- ☰ 9.4.5. Reproductive Behavior and Parental Care
- ☰ 9.4.6. The Special Status of Humans – An Outdated Concept?
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- ☰ 10. Ecology
- ☰ 10.1. Organisms in Their Environment
- ☰ 10.1.1. Tolerance Range and Ecological Potency
- ☰ 10.1.2. Abiotic Environmental Factors
- ☰ 10.1.2.1. Influence of Water
- ☰ 10.1.2.2. Influence of Light
- ☰ 10.1.2.3. Influence of Mechanical Factors
- ☰ 10.1.2.4. Influence of Soil Factors
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- ☰ 10.1.3. Biotic Environmental Factors
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- ☰ 10.2. Structure of the Biosphere
- ☰ 10.2.1. Energy Flow and Nutrient Cycles
- ☰ 10.2.1.1. Carbon Cycle
- ☰ 10.2.1.2. Nitrogen Cycle
- ☰ 10.2.1.3. Phosphorus Cycle
- ☰ 10.2.1.4. Sulfur Cycle
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- ☰ 10.2.2. Ecosystems
- ☰ 10.2.3. Zonation of the Biosphere
- ☰ 10.2.3.1. Orobiomes – Mountain Ecosystems
- ☰ 10.2.3.2. Azonal Biomes
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- ☰ 10.2.4. Development and Change of Ecosystems
- ☰ 10.2.5. Forest Ecosystem
- ☰ 10.2.6. Lake Ecosystem
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- ☰ 10.3. Population Ecology
- ☰ 10.3.1. Growth and Development of a Population
- ☰ 10.3.2. Age Structure of Populations
- ☰ 10.3.3. Regulation of Population Density
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- ☰ 10.4. Humans and the Biosphere
- ☰ 10.4.1. Development of the World Population
- ☰ 10.4.2. Resources and Management of Land and Seas
- ☰ 10.4.3. Pollution of Air, Water, Soil
- ☰ 10.4.3.1. Air
- ☰ 10.4.3.2. Water
- ☰ 10.4.3.3. Soil
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- ☰ 10.4.4. Waste and Recycling
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- ☰ 10.5. Nature and Environmental Protection
- ☰ 10.5.1. Why Protect Nature and the Environment?
- ☰ 10.5.2. Decline of Biological Diversity
- ☰ 10.5.2.1. Climate Change
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- ☰ 10.5.3. Laws and Measures
- ☰ 10.5.3.1. International Efforts
- ☰ 10.5.3.2. Legislation
- ☰ 10.5.3.3. Protected Areas
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