Question

Explain how the observations of the amoebas and bacteria studied by Professor Kwang Jeon relate to the endosymbiotic theory.

Answer 1

In 1987, Professor Jeon noticed that his collection of amoeba were developing a large
number of dots. These large number of dots turned out to be bacteria, which were quickly killing off Jeon's collection. Jeon noted the least sick ones and began keeping records of their progress. The least sick ones apparently were more resistant to the bacteria since they survived and returned to their normal modes. However, some 40,000 of the invading bacteria were still present within each of the surviving amoebas! Through transplanting experimentation, Jeon found that the nucleus of the amoebas could live without the once pathogenic bacteria. Jeon's accidental discovery proves that it is possible for an organism to become dependent on and a functional part of invading organisms.