Germ lines and extended selection during the evolutionary transition to multicellularity

The major evolutionary transitions from unicellular organisms to multicellularity resulted in a profusion of complex life forms. During the transition from single cells to multicellular life, groups of cells acquired the capacity for reproduction as discrete units; however, the selective causes and underlying mechanisms remain debated. One perspective views the evolution of multicellularity as a shift in the timescale at which natural selection primarily operates-from that of individual cells to the timescale of reproducing groups of cells. Therefore, a distinguishing feature of multicellular reproduction, as opposed to simple growth of a multicellular collective, is that the capacity for reproduction must develop over a timescale that is greater than the reproductive timescale of a single cell. Here, I suggest that the emergence of specialized reproductive cells (the germ line) was an essential first stage of the evolutionary transition to multicellularity because it imposed the necessary delay-allowing natural selection to operate over the longer timescale of a multicellular life cycle, ultimately resulting in the evolution of complex multicellular organisms. This perspective highlights the possibility that the ubiquity of a germ-soma distinction among complex multicellular organisms reflects the fact that such life cycles, on first emergence, had the greatest propensity to participate in Darwinian evolution.

Automated summary

The major evolutionary transitions from unicellular organisms to multicellularity resulted in a profusion of complex life forms. One key aspect of this transition is the development of multicellular reproductive capacity, which operates on a different timescale than that of single cells. The emergence of specialized reproductive cells, such as the germ line, was essential for natural selection to operate over the longer timescale of a multicellular life cycle.