"Emergence of Complex Multicellular Organisms: A Billion Years Ago"
New research led by the University of Göttingen has revealed that complex green organisms, including land plants and many green algae, emerged almost a billion years ago. The study focused on the evolutionary history of morphological complexity in streptophytes, particularly the class of green algae known as Klebsormidiophyceae, which has the ability to colonize diverse habitats worldwide. Using modern gene sequencing data, researchers pinpointed the emergence of multicellularity to almost a billion years ago, shedding light on the genetic potential for multicellularity among streptophytes and indicating an ancient origin for this crucial trait.