Check your subscription status, update your details and more. Cells from your mother could stay in your brain your whole life Most people seem to have cells that crossed the placenta from their mother into their developing brain in utero, even if they're now in their 80s Our mother’s cells may incorporate themselves into our body while we’re in the uterus, and stay within us for life Cells from your mother may have penetrated your brain when you were a fetus. These alien, or “microchimeric”, cells then seem to take up residence and perform a range of jobs, even into old age.
The discovery shows that “every human brain is likely a genetic mosaic of more than one person”, says Hina Chaudhry at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York, who wasn’t involved in the research. **Read more** Strangers within: Meet the other humans who live in your body Receive a weekly dose of discovery in your inbox. We'll also keep you up to date with _New Scientist_ events and special offers. #### Health ### You may carry cells from siblings, aunts and uncles News #### Health ### Human-pig chimeras are being grown – what will they let us do? News #### Health ### Human-animal chimeras may be key to us living healthier lives News #### Humans ### How older siblings may shape sexual orientation via mother’s immune system News Will we observe dark matter as a particle or a wave?### Do AIs already process information in a way that gives rise to consciousness?### Why the worst El Niño killed millions – and how we can avoid a repeat### OpenAI mistranslated mathematics into code for its Navier-Stokes proof### The Monte Verde controversy is back: who first lived in the Americas?### Can we harness the brain’s deep-cleaning system to prevent Alzheimer’s?### Impossibly fast-moving stars are revealing the Milky Way’s mysterious heart### AI’s solution to 87-year-old riddle takes mathematicians by surprise### ‘Astonishing’ weight loss when GLP-1 drug used with second medication### We’re finally learning what happens to gifted children in adulthood We and our partners use cookies and other technologies to collect user data .
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