3 ms·

I think the idea here is that mitochondria developed independent of cells and later lived exclusively inside of them. In other words, they reproduced without c

• semperdark 2y ago
  You're not wrong. But over the enormous amount of time since, the "duplicate" organelles and systems needed for independent living were steadily carved out of mitochondria. While they do have their own DNA and replication process, the DNA is basically limited to specific things they need to perform their energy-generation functions and the replication happens when triggered by host cell replication. It's a bit like if you took the heart from an animal and transplanted it into a human: is it meaningful to call it independently alive? Maybe, it depends what question you're trying to ask.
• dekhn 2y ago
  No, the predecessors of mitochondria were also cells and they reproduced through cellular division.