Cell-Bacteria Mergers Offer Clues to Organelle Evolution

Viviane Callier, Quanta

There are few relationships in nature more intimate than those between cells and the symbiotic bacteria, or endosymbionts, that live inside them. In these partnerships, a host cell typically provides protection to its endosymbiont and gives it a way to propagate, while the endosymbiont provides key nutrients to the host.