Scientists have discovered unique predatory bacteria

Some changes in DNA and RNA lead to serious hereditary disorders. Study of microscopic

single-celled organisms Papus ankaliazontas andApiculatamorpha spiralis will help scientists create new drugs for the treatment of parasitic diseases, the press service of Tyumen State University reported.

Biologists have discovered bacteria in freshwaterand salt lakes of Indonesia, Vietnam and Turkey. As a result of the study, scientists found that Papus ankaliazontas and Apiculatamorpha spiralis turned out to be the closest relatives of some human and animal parasites, for example, trypanosomes and leishmania. In addition, comparison of DNA sequences suggests that similar organisms live on the floor of the Atlantic Ocean among a hydrothermal vent field called the “Lost City.”

According to scientists, water temperature and chemicalthe composition in the region coincides with the conditions in which life once originated on Earth. The authors of the study suggest that the "Lost City" is inhabited by organisms that already lived on the planet 2.5 billion years ago.

The detected microorganisms includeto kinetoplastids —flagellate protozoa. They are usually considered parasites, but the bacteria discovered turned out to be free-living predators that eat other protozoans.

New organisms also revealed the largestnumber of nucleotide substitutions among cases known to science. As scientists note, further study of the processes of editing RNA and genetic material using the example of single-celled organisms may be the key to controlling harmful mutations that lead to serious genetic disorders, such as Alzheimer's disease. 

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