npr: This is a story about two people sharing one body. Maybe...

npr:

This is a story about two people sharing one body. Maybe even three people. Or four.

Back in the late 19th century, a German scientist named Georg Schmorl made a remarkable discovery: Cells from a baby can hide out in a mother’s body, after birth.

More than a hundred years later, scientists are just beginning to figure out what these cells are doing. And their findings may have implications for how cancer and autoimmune diseases affect women.

But the discovery also means something else. Something that’s a bit mind-boggling: You likely have cells from your older siblings in your body. And cells from your grandmother, maybe even your great-grandmother.

Fetal Cells May Protect Mom From Disease Long After The Baby’s Born

Illustration: Joseph Daniel Fiedler for NPR

Um, duh? Do you remember the last time your mom got sick?

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