An article published in the journal “Nature Ecology & Evolution” describes the discovery of evidence of the existence of sponges about 630 million years ago, in the Neoproterozoic era. A team of researchers at the University of California, Riverside (UCR) found a biomarker in a fossil dating back to that era called 26-methylstigmastane or just 26-mes that is produced only by sponges. In general, this is the oldest evidence of animal life and therefore multicellular.