Freshwater hydra feeding.
Photo credit: Motic America, May 17, 2022
Transmissible cancers cells can spread from one individual to another, like an infectious disease. Two transmissible tumors nearly wiped out the Tasmanian devil. Another causes unsightly tumors in dogs’ genitals.
In a paper published in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B, scientists report the spontaneous generation of transmissible tumors in the lab. The discovery was made in small, anemone like freshwater animals named hydras that are known to be cancer prone. Researchers hope the finding will help them better understand how these tumors develop, evolve, and spread, which could ultimately help prevent or control transmissible cancers in wildlife.
Hydras might seem to be an unexpected choice for researching cancer, but the freshwater cnidarian Hydra oligactis readily develop tumors when overfed in captivity, which makes them an excellent choice for studying how cancers arise. They reproduce asexually by generating clones of themselves through “budding." The buds form from the body wall, grow into miniature adults and break away when mature. These creatures can help researchers gain insight into the genetics of cancer.
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