Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41787125›Full record

ReviewThe EMBO journal2026

Asgard archaea: have we found our microbial ancestors?

Christa Schleper, Thiago Rodrigues-Oliveira

Abstract readReview
In one paragraph

Review in The EMBO journal, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. The Origins of GPCRs.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026
    Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

2 authors.

Christa SchleperDepartment of Functional and Evolutionary Ecology, University of Vienna, Djerassiplatz 1, Vienna, 1030, Austria. christa.schleper@univie.ac.at.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-1918-2735
Thiago Rodrigues-OliveiraDepartment of Functional and Evolutionary Ecology, University of Vienna, Djerassiplatz 1, Vienna, 1030, Austria.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7782-9333

Funding

Austrian Science Fund (FWF) EFP 25Austrian Science Fund (FWF) W1257
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

The discovery of Asgard archaea about a decade ago has greatly reshaped our understanding of archaeal evolution and the origin of eukaryotes. Asgards are currently thought to be the closest prokaryotic relatives of eukaryotes and to represent the archaeal host lineage that participated in the endosymbiotic event leading to the first eukaryotic cell. The presence of numerous eukaryotic signature proteins in Asgard genomes supports this view and provides important insights into the deep evolutionary roots of eukaryotic cellular complexity. However, the close relationship between archaea and eukaryotes had been observed for decades, based on features that are shared in different molecular processes. This review discusses the discovery of Asgard archaea in the broader context of archaeal molecular and cellular biology and highlights how earlier findings foreshadowed their emergence. Primarily targeted at newcomers to the field, the review provides an overview of evolutionary innovations across the Archaea domain and discusses molecular and cellular features of cultivated Asgard strains in light of previous archaeal research.

Indexed as

ArchaeaBiological EvolutionEukaryotaCell CycleGenome, ArchaealMetagenomicsOrganelle BiogenesisProtein BiosynthesisSymbiosisTranscription, GeneticArchaeaEukaryogenesisEukaryotesEvolutionMetagenomics

Identifiers

PMID41787125
PMCPMC12993045

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.