A Phylometagenomic Exploration of Oceanic Alphaproteobacteria Reveals Mitochondrial Relatives Unrelated to the SAR11 Clade

Abstract

Our results allude to the existence of an alphaproteobacterial clade in the oxygen-rich surface waters of the oceans that represents the closest free-living relative to mitochondria identified thus far. In addition, our findings underscore the importance of expanding the taxonomic diversity in phylogenetic analyses beyond that represented by cultivated bacteria to study the origin of mitochondria.