At the dawn of time, when our planet was a blank canvas, some primitive microorganisms managed to find a formula that, little by little, would radically transform the globe’s atmosphere and allow the emergence of life as we know it. His achievement was, essentially, the ‘miracle’ of photosynthesis. That is, the process to convert water and carbon dioxide into oxygen. For decades, scientists have been investigating the origin of this process so essential for life. And according to a study published this Wednesday in the ‘Nature’ magazinethe first microorganisms that managed to find the formula of photosynthesis date back to nothing more and nothing less than 1.75 billion years ago.
Its story took place at a time when the world was populated by single-celled organisms such as bacteria and algae. At that time, the air was essentially composed of gases such as water vapor, carbon dioxide and methane so, for practical purposes, it did not allow the development of any type of complex life form. It was then when, almost by magic, a series of microorganisms launched a process through which they used sunlight to convert carbon dioxide and water into glucose and, in turn, release oxygen as a byproduct. But when exactly did this whole process begin?
The study of this phenomenon would allow us to unravel the mystery of the origin of life.
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An analysis carried out by the researchers Catherine Demoulin and Emmanuelle Javauxfrom the University of Liège in Belgium, has managed to find a collection of 1.75 billion year old microfossils which, as the analyzes show, represent the oldest evidence found to date of photosynthetic structures. These are specimens of ‘Navifusa majensis’ that come from the McDermott Formation in Australia and that, probably, belong to what we currently know as cyanobacteria. Experts point out that, probably, the photosynthesis machinery started before the appearance of these microorganisms but, at least according to current evidence, these were one of the first to ‘perfect’ the process as we know it.
The authors of this analysis argue that we must continue studying the origin and evolution of this process throughout the history of our planet since it was this ‘miracle’ that, in the long run, created the conditions for more complex life forms to emerge on land, sea and air and, finally, allowed the birth of our planet. own species. As experts explain, understanding how and when all this happened is not only key to decipher the origins of life on our planet but, eventually, it could also give us clues to understand how life could sprout on other distant worlds.