ERC Consolidator Grant · 2024
Plastids, the photosynthetic organelles of eukaryotes, arose via endosymbiosis of cyanobacteria by a eukaryotic host and were subsequently spread across eukaryotic diversity by additional endosymbioses. These events greatly impacted the evolution of eukaryotes, introducing a novel lifestyle and shaping their diversity, yet we still know very little about the steps taking place during plastid endosymbiosis. The traditional view considers this a straightforward uptake and retention of the symbiont that later becomes the plastid, followed by genetic integration. Recently, profoundly different models proposing several, transient interactions with a variety of endosymbionts that transfer genes…
From the public funding record at EU CORDIS. Describes the funded project, not the reviews below.