Our Environment Contents

1. Evolution

It is believed that eukaryotes evolved from prokaryotes through a process called endosymbiosis.

The endosymbiotic theory of eukaryote evolution proposes that eukaryotes arose from collections of prokaryotic cells which initially lived in symbiosis - a union of organisms which depended upon each other for their existence. Eventually some organisms were absorbed inside others. This is called endosymbiosis (endo means within). The internal prokaryotes became cell structures, giving rise to more complex cells with DNA enclosed in nuclei, and eukaryotes were born.

Follow this link for a humorous musical explanation of endosymbiotic theory

What is meant by endosymbiosis?