The first BMCs were observed in the 1950s in electron micrographs of cyanobacteria, and were later named carboxysomes after their role in carbon fixation was established.
Os primeiros microcompartimentos bacterianos observáronse na década de 1950 en micrografías electrónicas de cianobacterias, e foron posteriormente denominados carboxisomas unha vez que se estableceu o seu papel na fixación do carbono.