Microbes in mass extinction: an accomplice or a savior?

Natl Sci Rev. 2023 Nov 21;11(1):nwad291. doi: 10.1093/nsr/nwad291. eCollection 2024 Jan.

Abstract

The invisible microbes are the main components of the biosphere and proliferated in many mass extinctions of animals. Whether the proliferation of microbes was an accomplice or a savior of the mass extinction remains uncertain. Future work has to quantify the dual effects of microbes on the environment.