Shown are representatives of all major lineages of eukaryotic organisms, color coded for occurrence of multicellularity. Solid black circles indicate major lineages composed entirely of unicellular ...

The transition from single-celled to multicellular organisms was one of the most significant developments in the history of life on Earth. Without it, all living things would still be microscopic and ...

The appearance of free oxygen in the Earth’s atmosphere led to the Great Oxidation Event. This was triggered by cyanobacteria producing the oxygen which developed into multicellular forms as early as ...

Cassandra Extavour and her colleagues, who study the origins of multicellular organisms and the evolution of cooperation, still disagree on the meaning of key concepts such as cooperation, competition ...

The evolution of multicellularity represents one of the most consequential transitions in the history of life. This process, in which individual cells coalesce to form integrated and functionally ...

One of the big evolutionary questions in life is how and why single cell organisms organized themselves to live in a group, thereby forming multicellular life forms. Scientists have answered at least ...

E. coli is arguably the most well-studied organism on Earth, but scientists have now discovered a new behavior that’s almost never seen in bacteria. The normally single-celled organisms have shown ...

A genomic study of Gonium pectorale (shown here) and closely related algae reveals that co-option of genes for cell cycle regulation helped unicellular organisms evolve toward multicellularity.

If you know anything about deep history, you’ve doubtless heard something about the Cambrian Explosion, 542 million years ago (MYA), when all those trilobites showed up with their animal body plans.

For over 3 billion years, single-celled organisms were the only living creatures in the primordial soup of the earth’s oceans. Then around 600 million years ago, the first multicellular animals, ...

Each cell of the human body contains two meters of DNA. The whole secret lies in the intricate three-dimensional arrangement ...

An interview with the developmental biologist Cassandra Extavour on the origins of multicellular organisms and the evolution of cooperation. The developmental biologist Cassandra Extavour sings ...