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Updated: Aug 8, 2026
11:37
Cellular Redox Profiling Using High-content Microscopy
Published on: May 14, 2017
Redox control and the evolution of multicellularity
1Department of Biological Sciences, Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, IL 60115, USA. neilb@niu.edu
Summary
Redox signaling, the transfer of electrons and hydrogen atoms, helps bacteria adapt to changing environments. This process may have also enabled multicellular organisms to evolve by regulating development and promoting group survival.
Area of Science:
- Biochemistry
- Evolutionary Biology
- Cell Biology
Background:
- Redox chemistry is fundamental to cellular respiration and gene expression control in bacteria.
- Colonial organisms face variable food supplies, suggesting a need for adaptive developmental regulation.
- Redox signaling is implicated in bacterial environmental responses.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the adaptive role of redox control in colonial metazoans.
- To explore the evolutionary significance of redox signaling in the transition to multicellularity.
Main Methods:
- Experimental perturbations of redox state in colonial hydroids.
- Analysis of redox signaling in the context of programmed cell death and group selection.
Main Results:
- Experimental evidence supports adaptive redox control in colonial hydroids.
- Redox signaling may have evolved in response to ecological pressures in colonial organisms.
- Redox signaling, coupled with programmed cell death, can penalize selfish cell behavior.
Conclusions:
- Redox signaling likely played a crucial role in the evolution of multicellularity.
- This signaling mechanism may have facilitated the maintenance of individuality in multicellular groups.
- Redox control offers an adaptive advantage for colonial organisms with fluctuating resources.
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