Horizontal Transmission of Clonal Cancer Cells Causes Leukemia in Soft-Shell Clams

Outbreaks of fatal leukemia-like cancers of marine bivalves throughout the world have led to massive population loss. The cause of the disease is unknown. We recently identified a retrotransposon, Steamer, that is highly expressed and amplified to high copy number in neoplastic cells of soft-shell c...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Cell 2015-04, Vol.161 (2), p.255-263
Main Authors: Metzger, Michael J., Reinisch, Carol, Sherry, James, Goff, Stephen P.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
alleles
Animals
clams
DNA, Mitochondrial - genetics
genotype
leukemia
Leukemia - genetics
Leukemia - pathology
Maine
marine environment
Microsatellite Repeats
mitochondrial DNA
Mya - cytology
Mya - genetics
Mya arenaria
neoplasm cells
New York
Prince Edward Island
Retroelements
retrotransposons
single nucleotide polymorphism
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Summary:Outbreaks of fatal leukemia-like cancers of marine bivalves throughout the world have led to massive population loss. The cause of the disease is unknown. We recently identified a retrotransposon, Steamer, that is highly expressed and amplified to high copy number in neoplastic cells of soft-shell clams (Mya arenaria). Through analysis of Steamer integration sites, mitochondrial DNA single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), and polymorphic microsatellite alleles, we show that the genotypes of neoplastic cells do not match those of the host animal. Instead, neoplastic cells from dispersed locations in New York, Maine, and Prince Edward Island (PEI), Canada, all have nearly identical genotypes that differ from those of the host. These results indicate that the cancer is spreading between animals in the marine environment as a clonal transmissible cell derived from a single original clam. Our findings suggest that horizontal transmission of cancer cells is more widespread in nature than previously supposed. [Display omitted] [Display omitted] •Clam leukemia genotypes are distinct from their hosts and nearly identical to each other•The transmissible cancer clone likely arose in a single individual•Clam leukemia is transmitted horizontally between animals as contagious cancer cells•Contagious cancer cell transmission may be widespread in the marine environment A fatal form of cancer is spreading between animals in the marine environment as a clonal horizontally transmissible cell, likely derived from a single original clam.
ISSN:0092-8674
1097-4172
DOI:10.1016/j.cell.2015.02.042