Evolution of major Desulfobacterota lineages and association with geological events. (IMAGE)
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(a) Time tree of the major lineages of the phylum Desulfobacterota, with the sulfate-reducing Desulfonema and sulfide-oxidizing cable bacteria falling in two separate linages. (b) Evolution of Earth’s atmospheric oxygen content through time, PAL = present atmospheric level. (c) Simplified estimate for the history of seawater sulfate concentrations. Shaded areas crossing (a) to (c) represent time intervals of GOE and NOE, respectively, highlighting the coincidence between phylogenetic evolution of the sulfate-reducing bacteria and major increases of Earth’s atmospheric oxygen content as well as oceanic sulfate concentrations.
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