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Energetics and evolution: Response to Martin
1Biodesign Center for Mechanisms of Evolution, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, 85287-7701, United States of America.
None:
A recent paper in this journal claims that prior estimates of the bioenergetic costs of producing cells are off by more than 100-fold. Here, it is shown that this conclusion is based on an erroneous interpretation of the methods previously employed by a diversity of authors and that the downstream arguments are conceptually flawed. Likewise, the author's claim that the establishment of the mitochondrion caused a quantum leap in bioenergetic capacity that spurred a revolution in eukaryotic innovation is inconsistent with empirical data and evolutionary theory.
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