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Seeing Is Believing: Intercellular Transfer of DNA between Human Cells
Eric G Sun1,2,3, Andrea Ventura3
1Tri-Institutional MD-PhD Program, Weill Cornell Medicine, Rockefeller University, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, New York.
Cancer Research
|June 11, 2026
Summary
Genomic instability causes DNA to move outside the nucleus. This cytoplasmic DNA can transfer between human cells via nanotubes, becoming functional in recipients.
Area of Science:
- Cell Biology
- Genetics
- Molecular Biology
Background:
- Genomic insults like DNA damage and mitotic errors can lead to nuclear DNA mis-localization into the cytoplasm.
- Cytoplasmic DNA, in forms such as micronuclei or fragmented chromosomes, presents a potential source of genetic instability.
- Previous research suggested the possibility of intercellular DNA transfer, but the mechanism remained unclear.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the mechanism of cytoplasmic DNA transfer between human cells.
- To determine if genome instability influences the transfer of cytoplasmic DNA.
- To assess the functionality and impact of transferred DNA in recipient cells.
Main Methods:
- Utilized various human cell lines to study DNA transfer.
- Employed nanotube-like connections as the observed intercellular transfer mechanism.
- Assessed DNA incorporation and functionality in recipient cells using genetic and molecular assays.
Main Results:
- Demonstrated the transfer of cytoplasmic DNA between cells through nanotube-like connections.
- Showed that genome instability significantly promotes this DNA transfer phenomenon.
- Confirmed that transferred DNA can be incorporated into the recipient cell nucleus and is functionally active.
- Observed that transferred DNA can confer a fitness advantage to recipient cells.
Conclusions:
- Uncovered a novel mechanism of horizontal gene transfer in human cells mediated by cytoplasmic DNA transfer via nanotubes.
- This horizontal gene transfer could play a significant role in human disease and biological processes.
- The findings highlight a new pathway for genetic exchange and adaptation in human cells.
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