Tracy DeStazio writes:

During pregnancy, maternal and fetal cells migrate back and forth across the placenta, with fetal cells entering the mother’s bloodstream and tissues. They can settle in maternal organs such as the thyroid, liver, lungs, brain and heart—and can persist there for decades. Conversely, maternal cells can enter the fetus and be passed down to future generations, essentially creating a lifelong connection between mothers, their offspring and their descendants.

In other words, we all carry little pieces of our family with us.

This phenomenon, called microchimerism, is often characterized by cells of different genetic origin that circulate within the body and can occur either naturally through pregnancy or artificially through organ transplantation and blood transfusions. Microchimeric cells can be transferred from a fetus to its mother, from the mother to her children and even back and forth between multiples within the womb.

Microchimeric cells can play complex roles in a person’s body, often beneficial as well as harmful. They can help heal wounds, repair tissue and regulate the immune system, but they have also been linked to pregnancy complications as well as autoimmune diseases such as scleroderma and rheumatoid arthritis, and certain cancers like leukemia.

Microchimerism is not new. Its existence has been well documented since its discovery in the late 19th century, but it has recently made a resurgence in popular mainstream media.

However, what microchimeric cells do, how they move between bodies and what their role is in health outcomes remain largely unknown. [Continue reading…]