Under the Sea, a Missing Link in the Evolution of Complex Cells – NYTimes.com

The business of  swallowing organisms as a source of energy (discussed below) seems similar to corporations swallowing up workers and consumers in evolutionary adventures.

A number of researchers have proposed that the ancestors of eukaryotes swallowed up free-living bacteria. The bacteria became mitochondria, providing fuel for their host cell.

Scientists have discovered microbes that have many — but not all — of the features previously only found in eukaryotes.

Source: Under the Sea, a Missing Link in the Evolution of Complex Cells - NYTimes.com