--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Rather surprisingly, to anyone who is…" description: "\"“Rather surprisingly, to anyone who is most familiar with textbook mitochondria, many simple single-celled eukaryotes have mitochondria that operate in..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d92/nick-lane-26984_quote_rather-surprisingly-to-anyone-who-is-mos_648148.jpg" --- # Rather surprisingly, to anyone who is most familiar with… ![“Rather surprisingly, to anyone who is most familiar with textbook mitochondria, many simple single-celled eukaryotes have mitochondria that operate in the absence of oxygen. Instead of using oxygen to burn up food, these ‘anaerobic’ mitochondria use other simple compounds like nitrate or nitrite…” quote by Nick Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d92/nick-lane-26984_quote_rather-surprisingly-to-anyone-who-is-mos_648148.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d92/nick-lane-26984_quote_rather-surprisingly-to-anyone-who-is-mos_648148.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d92/nick-lane-26984_quote_rather-surprisingly-to-anyone-who-is-mos_648148.jpg) > ““Rather surprisingly, to anyone who is most familiar with textbook mitochondria, many simple single-celled eukaryotes have mitochondria that operate in the absence of oxygen. Instead of using oxygen to burn up food, these ‘anaerobic’ mitochondria use other simple compounds like nitrate or nitrite. In most other respects, they operate in a very similar fashion to our own mitochondria, and are unquestionably related. So the spectrum stretches from aerobic mitochondria like our own, which are dependent on oxygen, through ‘anaerobic’ mitochondria, which prefer to use other molecules like nitrates, to the hydrogenosomes, which work rather differently but are still related.”” [Nick Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-lane/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Mitochondria can function without oxygen, using alternative compounds, showing metabolic diversity across life. **In simple terms:** Mitochondria can work without oxygen, using other chemicals. Key Takeaway Explore alternative energy pathways in biology. Themes biology metabolism evolutionary diversity Mood curious analytical Type scientific educational When to use this quote - research labs - education - biotech development - environmental studies Key Concepts cellular respiration anaerobic processes hydrogenosomes Questions to Reflect On - How do anaerobic mitochondria affect organismal adaptation? - What implications does this have for bioenergy? A Different Perspective Oxygen‑dependent organisms may dominate in many contexts. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Aerobic Mitochondria](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aerobic-mitochondria-5188802/) [Anaerobic Mitochondria](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anaerobic-mitochondria-5188800/) [Evolution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evolution/) [Mitochondria](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mitochondria/) [Mitochondria Operate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mitochondria-operate-5188799/) [Mitochondria Simple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mitochondria-simple-5188801/) ## Related quotes > [“Mitochondria, as we have seen, are only passed on in the egg, so all 13 mitochondrial genes come from our mothers. If these genes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-lane/mitochondria-as-we-have-seen-are-only-passed-on-in-the-egg-so-all-13/) [Nick Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-lane/) > [“Metabolically active cells, such as those of the liver, kidneys, muscles, and brain, have hundreds or thousands of mitochondria, making up some 40 per…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-lane/metabolically-active-cells-such-as-those-of-the-liver-kidneys-muscles/) [Nick Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-lane/) > [“One mitochondrion contains tens of thousands of copies of each respiratory complex. A single cell contains hundreds or thousands of mitochondria. Your 40 trillion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-lane/one-mitochondrion-contains-tens-of-thousands-of-copies-of-each/) [Nick Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-lane/) > [“Cooks were the mitochondria of humanity; they had their own separate DNA, they floated in a cell and powered it but were not really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-franzen/cooks-were-the-mitochondria-of-humanity-they-had-their-own-separate/) [Jonathan Franzen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-franzen/) > [“Mitochondria are strange organelles in the sense that they have their own DNA and ribosomes.Therefore, mitochondria are able to make some of their own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/mitochondria-are-strange-organelles-in-the-sense-that-they-have-their/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“In the normal process of producing energy, each mitochondrion produces hundreds if not thousands of free radical molecules each day. Multiply that by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-perlmutter/in-the-normal-process-of-producing-energy-each-mitochondrion-produces/) [David Perlmutter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-perlmutter/) > [Over the long term, symbiosis is more useful than parasitism. More fun, too. Ask any mitochondria.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-wall/over-the-long-term-symbiosis-is-more-useful-than-parasitism-more-fun/) [Larry Wall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-wall/) > [We are not made up, as we had always supposed, of successively enriched packets of our own parts. We are shared, rented, occupied. At…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-thomas/we-are-not-made-up-as-we-had-always-supposed-of-successively-enriched/) [Lewis Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-thomas/) > [My mitochondria comprise a very large proportion of me. I cannot do the calculation, but I suppose there is almost as much of them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-thomas/my-mitochondria-comprise-a-very-large-proportion-of-me-i-cannot-do/) [Lewis Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-thomas/) > [“I try to think up material that might apply to the subjects they are studying. How many mitochondria does it take to power a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-birbiglia/i-try-to-think-up-material-that-might-apply-to-the-subjects-they-are/) [Mike Birbiglia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-birbiglia/) > [“Were it not for the melanin in our skin, myoglobin in our muscles and haemoglobin in our blood, we would be the colour of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-brown/were-it-not-for-the-melanin-in-our-skin-myoglobin-in-our-muscles-and/) [Guy Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-brown/) > [If the polymer chain assumes a helicoidal conformation in the crystalline state, and if it does not contain asymmetric carbon atoms, it can be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giulio-natta/if-the-polymer-chain-assumes-a-helicoidal-conformation-in-the/) [Giulio Natta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giulio-natta/) > [“A question for Christians who accept evolution: When did we gain a "soul"? Did Homo habilis have a soul? Homo ergaster? Did God only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-g-mcafee/a-question-for-christians-who-accept-evolution-when-did-we-gain-a/) [David G. McAfee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-g-mcafee/) > [At the deepest level, all living things that have ever been looked at have the same DNA code. And many of the same genes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/at-the-deepest-level-all-living-things-that-have-ever-been-looked-at/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [I rap when I'm rich. I rap when I'm broke. I rap when I'm bullshit in the street. I rap about only having one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/killer-mike/i-rap-when-i-m-rich-i-rap-when-i-m-broke-i-rap-when-i-m-bullshit-in/) [Killer Mike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/killer-mike/) ## More by Nick Lane > [“establishment. In 1966, the Dutch geologist M. G. Rutten could write, in a charmingly antiquated style that has passed forever from the scientific journals:”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-lane/establishment-in-1966-the-dutch-geologist-m-g-rutten-could-write-in-a/) [Nick Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-lane/) > [“Pigments such as haemoglobin are coloured because they absorb light of particular colours (bands of light, as in a rainbow) and reflect back light…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-lane/pigments-such-as-haemoglobin-are-coloured-because-they-absorb-light/) [Nick Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-lane/) > [“Energy and life go hand in hand. If you stop breathing, you will not be able to generate the energy you need for staying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-lane/energy-and-life-go-hand-in-hand-if-you-stop-breathing-you-will-not-be/) [Nick Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-lane/) > [“In an average person, ATP is produced at a rate of 9 × 1020 molecules per second, which equates to a turnover rate (the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-lane/in-an-average-person-atp-is-produced-at-a-rate-of-9-1020-molecules/) [Nick Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-lane/) > [“But whatever our beliefs, this richness of understanding should be a cause for marvel and celebration.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-lane/but-whatever-our-beliefs-this-richness-of-understanding-should-be-a/) [Nick Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-lane/) > [“and predictions. Science is often presented as ‘the facts’, frequently in”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-lane/and-predictions-science-is-often-presented-as-the-facts-frequently-in/) [Nick Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-lane/) > [“One mitochondrion contains tens of thousands of copies of each respiratory complex. A single cell contains hundreds or thousands of mitochondria. Your 40 trillion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-lane/one-mitochondrion-contains-tens-of-thousands-of-copies-of-each/) [Nick Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-lane/) > [“Nothing is more conservative than a bacterium.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-lane/nothing-is-more-conservative-than-a-bacterium/) [Nick Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-lane/) > [“This was difficult to prove as most hydrogenosomes have lost their entire genome, but it is now established with some certainty.1 In other words,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-lane/this-was-difficult-to-prove-as-most-hydrogenosomes-have-lost-their/) [Nick Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-lane/) > [“Matters came to a head after 1918, when the French scientist Paul Portier published his rhetorical masterpiece Les Symbiotes. He was nothing if not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-lane/matters-came-to-a-head-after-1918-when-the-french-scientist-paul/) [Nick Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-lane/) > [“Metabolically active cells, such as those of the liver, kidneys, muscles, and brain, have hundreds or thousands of mitochondria, making up some 40 per…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-lane/metabolically-active-cells-such-as-those-of-the-liver-kidneys-muscles/) [Nick Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-lane/) > [“the igneo-aerial food.” In other words, despite”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-lane/the-igneo-aerial-food-in-other-words-despite/) [Nick Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-lane/) > [“Timmis and colleagues found that chloroplast genes are transferred to the nucleus at a rate of about 1 transfer in every 16 000 seeds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-lane/timmis-and-colleagues-found-that-chloroplast-genes-are-transferred-to/) [Nick Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-lane/) > [“The point I want to make about methanogens is that they were the losers in the race through a bottleneck, yet nonetheless survived in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-lane/the-point-i-want-to-make-about-methanogens-is-that-they-were-the/) [Nick Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-lane/) > [“of oxygen, whether we think of it as ‘good’ or ‘bad’, is the formation of free radicals. As conventionally stated, the idea that breathing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-lane/of-oxygen-whether-we-think-of-it-as-good-or-bad-is-the-formation-of/) [Nick Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-lane/) [Explore all 21 Nick Lane quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-lane/) ## More Evolution quotes > [I rap when I'm rich. I rap when I'm broke. I rap when I'm bullshit in the street. I rap about only having one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/killer-mike/i-rap-when-i-m-rich-i-rap-when-i-m-broke-i-rap-when-i-m-bullshit-in/) [Killer Mike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/killer-mike/) > [At the deepest level, all living things that have ever been looked at have the same DNA code. And many of the same genes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/at-the-deepest-level-all-living-things-that-have-ever-been-looked-at/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [“A question for Christians who accept evolution: When did we gain a "soul"? Did Homo habilis have a soul? Homo ergaster? Did God only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-g-mcafee/a-question-for-christians-who-accept-evolution-when-did-we-gain-a/) [David G. McAfee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-g-mcafee/) > [If the polymer chain assumes a helicoidal conformation in the crystalline state, and if it does not contain asymmetric carbon atoms, it can be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giulio-natta/if-the-polymer-chain-assumes-a-helicoidal-conformation-in-the/) [Giulio Natta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giulio-natta/) > [“Genetics is a science full of gods, Mr. Sanchez.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valeria-luiselli/genetics-is-a-science-full-of-gods-mr-sanchez/) [Valeria Luiselli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valeria-luiselli/) > [We became Homo sapiens not that long ago, from the scientific perspective, and we've retained a lot of our beast nature. We've done all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wangechi-mutu/we-became-homo-sapiens-not-that-long-ago-from-the-scientific/) [Wangechi Mutu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wangechi-mutu/) > [Guns have little or nothing to do with juvenile violence. The causes of youth violence are working parents who put their kids into daycare,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-delay/guns-have-little-or-nothing-to-do-with-juvenile-violence-the-causes/) [Tom DeLay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-delay/) > [The fact -- not theory -- that evolution has occurred and the Darwinian theory as to how it occurred have become so confused in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-gaylord-simpson/the-fact-not-theory-that-evolution-has-occurred-and-the-darwinian/) [George Gaylord Simpson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-gaylord-simpson/) > [Perhaps no order of mammals presents us with so extraordinary a series of gradations as this \[step by step, from humans to apes to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-huxley/perhaps-no-order-of-mammals-presents-us-with-so-extraordinary-a/) [Thomas Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-huxley/) > [Evolution happens in jumps, very rapidly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-ferguson/evolution-happens-in-jumps-very-rapidly/) [Marilyn Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-ferguson/) > [The true nature of soul is right knowledge, right faith and right conduct. The soul, so long as it is subject to transmigration, is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virchand-gandhi/the-true-nature-of-soul-is-right-knowledge-right-faith-and-right/) [Virchand Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virchand-gandhi/) > [“Toshiaki learned that all living organisms were governed by their DNA. He was impressed by perfection of this system.Why did existence have the ability…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hideaki-sena/toshiaki-learned-that-all-living-organisms-were-governed-by-their-dna/) [Hideaki Sena](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hideaki-sena/) > [The shelves of many evangelicals are full of books that point out the flaws in evolution, discuss it only as a theory, and almost…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-collins/the-shelves-of-many-evangelicals-are-full-of-books-that-point-out-the/) [Francis Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-collins/) > [I'm all about evolution. I'm the first person to judge myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/the-weeknd/i-m-all-about-evolution-i-m-the-first-person-to-judge-myself/) [The Weeknd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/the-weeknd/) > [The next evolution of content marketing is not more content; it's better distribution.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-penn/the-next-evolution-of-content-marketing-is-not-more-content-it-s/) [Chris Penn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-penn/) [Browse all 6,185 Evolution quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evolution/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Rather surprisingly, to anyone who is most familiar with textbook mitochondria, many simple single-celled eukaryotes have mitochondria that operate in the absence of oxygen. Instead of using oxygen to burn up food, these ‘anaerobic’ mitochondria use other simple compounds like nitrate or nitrite. 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