In 2020, Researchers at Tel Aviv University (TAU) discovered what is believed to be the first "non-oxygen breathing animal"
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The researchers said that aerobic respiration was thought to be ubiquitous in animals
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The discovery was made by an accident, and it was found out by a team led by Dorothee Huchon, a zoologist at Tel Aviv University in Israel
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A parasite named Henneguya Salminicola can survive without oxygen as it get its energy from fermentation
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According to Huchon, Henneguya Salminicola is a parasite with less than ten cells is found in salmon muscle
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Until Huchon's discovery, it was assumed that all animals are breathing oxygen since they're multicellular and use the oxygen to form energy
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It is still unclear how Henneguya Salminicola generates energy
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But the researchers assume that the animal is drawing it from the surrounding fish cells, or it may have a different type of respiration such as oxygen-free breathing
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The professor at TAU said the discovery bears an enormous significance for future evolutionary research