Excuse Me, Can I Borrow a Cup of ATP?

There is a popular belief that eukaryotic mitochondria are a result of co-evolution of primitive eukaryotes and their prokaryotic symbiotes.  The hypothesis of this co-evolution stems mainly from the fact that eukaryotic mitochondria have several characteristics which resemble bacteria which no other organelle (besides chloroplasts in plants) possess. These characteristics include circular DNA, 70s ribosomes and reproduction via binary fission.

Many of the stories speculate that the relationship was a mutualistic one where both the eukaryotic cell and the prokaryote found benefit in their union, but a new study is showing evidence that the prokaryote may have been an energy parasite.

An article published at ScienceDaily.com reports on a University of Virginia study that used DNA sequencing to compare the genomes of bacterial species thought to be closely related to mitochondria. The researchers are predicting that the prokaryotic parasites actually took ATP from the host cell but after successive generations began to switch the direction of ATP transport and became beneficial to the host.

You can read the entire article here: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/10/141016165955.htm