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Chimerism in Humans:

A DNA Mystery

Janae Debeltz

Biology 1010C-23639

Professor Todd Harmon

April 20, 2015



Chimerism In Humans:

The History Behind This Medical Mystery

The name Chimera originates from Greek mythology; this monster in mythology is three

different animals: part serpent, part goat, and part lion (Rogers, 2014). Chimerism in humans can

occur in various forms, but there are five different types of chimera found in animals and hu-

mans. The five different variations of chimerism include: dispermic, twin chimeras, mi-

crochimeras, parthenogenetic chimeras, and androgenetic chimeras. In general, a chimera is "an

individual, organ, or part consisting of tissues of diverse genetic constitution,” (Merriam-Web-

ster). Many questions have been asked with the discovery of chimerism and some may have gone

unanswered. Many individuals and researchers throughout history have asked themselves the fol-

lowing questions:

I. How is a chimera formed?

II. What are the similarities and differences between each type of chimerism?

III. What controversies can become of this genetic difference?

These questions and many more resulted in countless research by scientists to answer questions

that will explain this unique genetic factor.

How is a Chimera Formed?

Since chimerism is basically the combination of genetics from multiple individuals, it can

be difficult to discover what occurred within the womb of the mother. One of the first known

cases of chimerism according to Carl Zimmer from the New York Times is:
In 1953, for example, a British woman donated a pint of blood. It turned out that

some of her blood was Type O and some was Type A. The scientists who studied her

concluded that she had acquired some of her blood from her twin brother in the womb,

including his genomes in his blood cells. (2013)

The type that is most like this case would be Twin Chimerism. This type of chimerism is when

two separate zygotes exchange cells or genetic material. Since sharing blood is the result most of

the time scientists discovered this by testing twins and they found it was “…produced when

blood anastomoses (connections) form between the placentas of dizygotic twins, thereby en-

abling the transfer of stem cells between the developing embryos,” (Rogers, 2014). Another form

of chimerism, dispermic chimerism, involves two eggs fertilized by two sperm and they then

fuse together to become a tetragametic individual— someone who originated from four gametes.

According to Vivienne Lam, the fusion of zygotes results in “… an organism that has two dis-

tinct cell lines, and the resulting fetus may be male, female or hermaphroditic…” (2007). Mi-

crochimerism, another type of chimerism, occurs when the placenta is crossed by fetal stem cells

or maternal cells; however, this type of chimerism can also occur after a blood transfusion or an

organ transplant. The last two types of chimerism are parthenogenetic and androgenetic

chimerism and both do not usually occur in humans. Parthenogenetic chimerism happens when a

normal zygote is joined with parthenogenesis generated fertilized egg. According to Brittanica,

“While human parthenogenetic chimeras seem improbable, scientists reported one such case in

1995,” (Rogers, 2014). Since parthenogenetic chimeras cannot be found naturally in mammals

most of the time, researchers and scientists develop these chimeras for studying. Lastly, androge-

netic chimeras are extremely rare and most of the time result in embryonic death for humans and
mammals. Androgenetic chimeras are so rare as a result of the chromosomal development within

the nucleus. These chimeras originate from “…cells that contain the normal combination of ma-

ternal and paternal chromosomes and cells that contain two sets of paternal chromosomes (pater-

nal isodisomy),” (Rogers, 2014). Overall, the formation of chimeras ultimately depends on the

type of chimera in question.

Similarities and Differences Between Types of Chimeras

Chimerism, as discussed earlier, occurs in various categories; therefore, the phenotypic

results vary due to the genotypes of the chimerism. Dispermic chimerism results in the eyes hav-

ing different coloration, skin discoloration in patches, and possible hermaphroditism. Like dis-

permic chimerism, twin chimerism has unique phenotypic characteristic; however, most of the

time they shared DNA through blood connections. Microchimeras, one of the most human-relat-

ed types, usually have a phenotype outcome of skin and autoimmune diseases. These diseases

have a considerable and possibly deadly affect on an individual who is a microchimera. Unlike

the previous types of chimerism, parthenogenetic chimerism happens in plants and invertebrates

mostly. Only one case of parthenogenetic chimerism has occurred in 20 years— since 1995. Sim-

ilar to parthenogenetic chimerism, androgenetic chimerism can occur in humans, but is shown

within mammals who have been subjected to experiments. If a human has androgenetic

chimerism the result is most often embryonic death. Mammals, like humans, usually do not sur-

vive to birth and if they do the newborn will end up having severe developmental disorders and

may not survive past their childhood.


Controversies Resulting from Chimerism

Since chimerism can occur both naturally and experimentally, controversies have devel-

oped from experimental processes. The ethical dilemmas that ensue from the experiments involv-

ing chimeras include: mixing human fetal stem cells and embryonic animals, crossing various

boundaries, and blurred lines with ethical standards. The experimental methods of testing

chimeras are lengthy and include different steps to withdraw human stem cells from the umbili-

cal cord of newly born individuals and implant the human stem cells into animal embryos. The

ethical issues that arise from this process is the idea that researchers are using living human cells

and injecting the DNA into animals. According to some individuals, this crossing of species

boundaries defies the laws of nature; however, to other people these experiments are designed to

help humans in the long run. According to Maryann Mott of National Geographic News, “… Je-

remy Rifkin is opposed to crossing species boundaries, because he believes animals have the

right to exist without being tampered with or crossed with another species,” (2005). The ethical

standards of using stem cells originating from umbilical cords of newborn babies are in question

because the umbilical cord had kept the fetus alive while in the womb and are a part of the moth-

er and child. Overall, the controversies from the experimental operations continue today and will

most likely continue for the near future.



Bibliography

ABC World News. (2006). Her Own Twin. [Online Video]. United States: ABC News. Retrieved

from http://abcnews.go.com/WNT/video/twin--2333602

Chimera. (2014). In Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Retrieved from

http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/1826423/chimera

Chimera. n.d. In Merriam-Webster.com. Retrieved April 18, 2015, from

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/chimera

DNA Double Take. [Editorial]. (2013, September 16). New York Times. Retrieved from

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/17/science/dna-double-take.html?_r=0

Kean, S. (2013). The You In Me. Retrieved from

https://www.psychologytoday.com/articles/201303/the-you-in-me

Lam, V. (N.D.). The Truth About Chimeras. Retrieved from

http://www.scq.ubc.ca/the-truth-about-chimeras/

Mott, M. (2005). Animal-Human Hybrids Spark Controversy. Retrieved from

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2005/01/0125_050125_chimeras.html

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