All life on Earth deals with viral infections on a daily basis, from prokaryotes (such as bacteria and archaea) to eukaryotes (animals, plants, and humans). Defending themselves against viruses is crucial for survival. While the immune system fulfills this function in eukaryotes, its origin remains a topic of debate. Recently, there has been a growing discussion about a potential bacterial origin of innate immune mechanisms. Undoubtedly, bacterial defense systems (DS) play a significant role in it, but what about archaea?
This research project aims to highlight the importance of including archaea in the debate on the origins of eukaryotic immune mechanisms. Asgard archaea have undoubtedly influenced eukaryotic cellular complexity, and our latest research suggests that this influence extends to their defense strategies as well. However, there is a significant knowledge gap—currently, less than 2% of the genomes used to discover and characterize new defense systems (DS) belong to archaea.
This project aspires to place archaea at the center of defense system characterization, advancing our understanding of both new and existing archaeal DS and situating them within the broader context of evolutionary history, across the Tree of Life.
