Scientists on a hike in Canada discover rare organism that's so unlike any other living plant, animal or bacteria it creates a new 'major branch' of the tree of life

  • Canada researchers discovered a new hemimastigote - a type of single-celled microorganism - two years ago
  • Science community has been aware of hemimastigotes for the past century, they have rarely been studied and are little understood 
  • The new research reveals that hemimastigotes differ from plants, animals, fungus and bacteria much more than scientists had ever realized
  • Commons evolutionary ancestors divided a billion years ago and researchers say the hemimastigotes createsa new 'major branch' of the tree of life
  • Dalhousie University group came across species during a hike in Nova Scotia    
  • Hemimastigote differ from bacteria and archaea because they have complex cells with organelles mini-organs, much like animals, plants, fungi and ameobas 

Canadian scientists have identified microscopic creatures so unlike any other living thing on earth that they have had to create an entirely new branch on the evolutionary tree of life for them.

A group from Dalhousie University made the discovery by chance during a hike along the Bluff Wilderness Trail in Nova Scotia two years ago, after they decided to gather random samples of dirt and analyze its microscopic elements when they got back to the lab.

What they found was hemimastigotes - a type of single-celled microorganism.

The Dalhousie found two species of hemimastigotes; the previously discovered Spironema and a brand new species they named Hemimastix kukwesjijk meaning  'rapacious hairy ogre' in the Mi'kmaq First Nations people of Nova Scotia langauge.

While the science community has been aware of hemimastigotes for the past century, they have rarely been studied and are little understood.

But this new research found hemimastigote behaving in surprising ways. Once they were revived in the lab the creatures developed hairs, referred to as flagella. While other flagella move in coordinated waves, the hair on these microbes moved independently both  to compel the organisation and to grasp prey.

Canada researchers discovered a new hemimastigote organism two years ago

Canada researchers discovered a new hemimastigote organism two years ago

Scientist found that, unlike bacteria and archaea, hemimastigotes had complex cells with organelles mini-organs, much like animals, plants, fungi and amoebas. 

In fact, the hemimastigotes were so different from any other creature on earth, they appear to have split from a shared ancestor on the evolutionary chain at least a billion years ago.

'This discovery literally redraws our branch of the 'Tree of Life' at one of its deepest points,' explained Alastair Simpson, the lead author of the study and biology professor at Dalhousie, told Gizmodo in a statement. 'It opens a new door to understanding the evolution of complex cells—and their ancient origins—back well before animals and plants emerged on Earth.'  

Graduate Yana Eglit, who co-authored a study published this week inNature, said hemimastigotes are considered 'a tantalizing mystery' to microbiologists, CBC.ca reports.   

They they found Spironema and the previously unknown Hemimastix kukwesjijk

They they found Spironema and the previously unknown Hemimastix kukwesjijk

Dalhousie University group came across species during a hike in Nova Scotia

Dalhousie University group came across species during a hike in Nova Scotia

Their study looked at the way Spironema paired with the previously unknown Hemimastix kukwesjijk.

Eglit added water to the sample of dirt in the labraoty to revive the microscopic creatures. Three weeks later she found a pistachio-shaped figure with hairs, referred to as flagella.  

'It's as if these cells never really learned that they have many flagella,' Eglit laughed about their movement. 

Talking about how 'it presumably sucks its cytoplasm out', Eglit shared how the hemimastix shoots extrusomes (harpoons) to attack prey - such as aquatic microbe diatom's relative Spumella – in order to grasp it with flagella and lead it to its capitulum (mouth).

After seeing this behavior Eglit was able to feed it and replicate it so other scientists could have a chance to study it.

The findings claimed that the 'rare' hemimastigotes are in fact so unique that they qualify to form its own 'supra-kingdom'. 

They they found Spironema and the previously unknown Hemimastix kukwesjijk

They they found Spironema and the previously unknown Hemimastix kukwesjijk

Graduate Yana Eglit (center glasses, green top), postdoctoral researcher Laura Eme (center with scarf) and graduate student Gordon Lax, and Alastair Simpson (second from right, blue shirt) co-authored a study published this week in Nature

Graduate Yana Eglit (center glasses, green top), postdoctoral researcher Laura Eme (center with scarf) and graduate student Gordon Lax, and Alastair Simpson (second from right, blue shirt) co-authored a study published this week in Nature

'It really shows how much more there is out there,' she added.

Dalhousie biology professor Alastair Simpson, Eglit's supervisor and co-author of the new study spoke about how ancestors of the newly-discovered microbes can't be traced back until a billion years ago.

It's still 500 million years before the first animals.

'They represent a major branch… that we didn't know we were missing,' Simpson said. 'There's nothing we know that's closely related to them.'

He added as they prepare for a complete genetic analysis: 'It'll be the one time in my lifetime that we find this sort of thing.' 

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