“Long ago it became evident that the
key to every biological problem must
finally be sought in the cell; for every
living organism is, or at some time has
been, a cell”.
E. B. Wilson
(The Cell in Development and
Heredity. 3rd ed. Macmillan Inc.,
New York, 1925).
ORIGIN AND EVOLUTION OF THE CELL
CHAPTER 1
The Cell — Life Link
Section 1.1.With the development of biology the view that all living
organisms inhabiting the planet Earth, man including are
independently existing cells or are built up from cells has been finally
confirmed and widely spread. In its universal scope and significance this
achievement can be undisputedly accepted as a pinnacle in biology in
particular and in human knowledge as a whole.
The path leading to that peak was long and extremely hard. It was
marked by embittered battles between various opinions, hypotheses and
theories, proved and refuted by courageous scientific experiments and
decisions which in the end led to its conquering.
The origin of cell is closely related to the generation and evolution of
living matter, i.e. — life, as this unique phenomenon is called. To this
interrelated process in its development in nature and its study by man is
devoted the present Chapter of the book.
It is necessary to state from the very beginning that the formation of
modern concepts of the origin of life, its development and evolution from
lower to higher forms of existence results from the efforts of a great number
of very far-seeing sagacious human minds (thinkers, philosophers,
astronomers, natural scientists, astrophysicists, geochemists, biologists,
cytologists, chemists, biochemists, cosmologists, etc.) since ancient times
till our day. They are so numerous that it is practically impossible all their
names and tributes to be mentioned in only one book, very limited in
volume. That is why only the names of the ones that have played a
significant and at times most decisive role in the process of elucidation of
this exceptionally important problem for humanity will be quoted.