Lise Barnéoud – författare

"[A] fascinating book. . . . [Barnéoud] ruminates on how microchimerism might change our understanding of ourselves."—Sam Kean, Wall Street JournalWhat if some of your cells were not your own? What if they once belonged to someone else?Part mind-bending medical mystery—part cutting-edge science—Hidden Guests uncovers the astonishing phenomenon of microchimerism: the presence of foreign cells inside our own bodies. The incredible story of how those cells got there—and what they do once they arrive—might change everything we know about the immune system, lineage, and identity.We are all told the same story as children: that we grew from a single cell into a human, that all of our cells came from the first fertilized egg, and that we have one distinct genetic code. But scientists are beginning to challenge that story.The discovery of microchimerism shows that not all our cells are our own—some of them migrated from other bodies. How did they get there? Scientists are still studying their journey, but today we know cells are exchanged in pregnancy, through transplants and blood transfusions, and possibly even through sex. But what does this mean for our daily lives—is it really such a big deal if someone else’s cell turns up in our bodies? The answer is, as author Lise Barnéoud shows in Hidden Guests, that the implications could be earth-shattering.In Hidden Guests, Barnéoud interviews doctors, researchers, and medical experts at the forefront of microchimerism research. She interweaves their fascinating discoveries with the shocking human stories of microchimerism including:The story of the mother who gave birth to the genetic children of her sister … even though her sister had never been born.The story of the man whose DNA was found at a crime scene—only he was in prison at the time. It turned out that he had received a bone marrow transplant, and the DNA came from his donor—the actual offender.The story of a cancer survivor who discovered that the cells in his blood, saliva, hair, and even his semen were slowly being replaced by the cells of his organ donorThe story of a woman whose children were nearly taken away after genetic testing showed she was not their mother—until she proved that their DNA came from a vanished twin whose cells she had absorbed in uteroHidden Guests traces the history of this still emerging science while asking philosophical and probing questions about immunity, biology, evolution, parental testing, criminal forensics, and the concept of individual identity. Barnéoud makes the case for expanding our notions of both self and immunity: as ever-changing collectives of cells in relation, we are not unlike ecosystems. And like ecosystems, perhaps, the greater our diversity, the greater our resilience.

"[A] fascinating book. . . . [Barnéoud] ruminates on how microchimerism might change our understanding of ourselves."—Sam Kean, Wall Street JournalWhat if some of your cells were not your own? What if they once belonged to someone else?Part mind-bending medical mystery—part cutting-edge science—Hidden Guests uncovers the astonishing phenomenon of microchimerism: the presence of foreign cells inside our own bodies. The incredible story of how those cells got there—and what they do once they arrive—might change everything we know about the immune system, lineage, and identity.We are all told the same story as children: that we grew from a single cell into a human, that all of our cells came from the first fertilized egg, and that we have one distinct genetic code. But scientists are beginning to challenge that story.The discovery of microchimerism shows that not all our cells are our own—some of them migrated from other bodies. How did they get there? Scientists are still studying their journey, but today we know cells are exchanged in pregnancy, through transplants and blood transfusions, and possibly even through sex. But what does this mean for our daily lives—is it really such a big deal if someone else’s cell turns up in our bodies? The answer is, as author Lise Barnéoud shows in Hidden Guests, that the implications could be earth-shattering.In Hidden Guests, Barnéoud interviews doctors, researchers, and medical experts at the forefront of microchimerism research. She interweaves their fascinating discoveries with the shocking human stories of microchimerism including:The story of the mother who gave birth to the genetic children of her sister … even though her sister had never been born.The story of the man whose DNA was found at a crime scene—only he was in prison at the time. It turned out that he had received a bone marrow transplant, and the DNA came from his donor—the actual offender.The story of a cancer survivor who discovered that the cells in his blood, saliva, hair, and even his semen were slowly being replaced by the cells of his organ donorThe story of a woman whose children were nearly taken away after genetic testing showed she was not their mother—until she proved that their DNA came from a vanished twin whose cells she had absorbed in uteroHidden Guests traces the history of this still emerging science while asking philosophical and probing questions about immunity, biology, evolution, parental testing, criminal forensics, and the concept of individual identity. Barnéoud makes the case for expanding our notions of both self and immunity: as ever-changing collectives of cells in relation, we are not unlike ecosystems. And like ecosystems, perhaps, the greater our diversity, the greater our resilience.

«Uno de esos libros que transforman por completo tu visión del mundo.» Libération¿Y si no fuéramos tan «nosotros» como creemos? ¿Y si nuestras identidades estuvieran entretejidas con las de otros, incluso a nivel celular?En este fascinante libro, Lise Barnéoud nos guía a través del enigmático mundo del microquimerismo, un fenómeno biológico que demuestra que en nuestros cuerpos habitan células aparentemente foráneas, provenientes de nuestras madres, hijos, hermanos o incluso de generaciones pasadas. Estas células viajeras, lejos de ser intrusas peligrosas, se integran en nuestros órganos, se multiplican, producen proteínas y hasta podrían influir en nuestra salud, nuestras emociones e incluso en nuestra propia identidad.Con una brillante mezcla de prosa cautivadora e investigación rigurosa, Las células errantes explora las preguntas más profundas y desconcertantes que plantea esta ciencia emergente: ¿cómo altera el microquimerismo nuestra percepción del yo? ¿Qué implicaciones tiene para la maternidad, la filiación y la memoria genética? ¿Podría ser la clave para terapias revolucionarias? Desde los laboratorios científicos hasta los debates éticos, religiosos y sociales que estos descubrimientos provocan, Las células errantes es un viaje apasionante que desafía nuestras ideas sobre la individualidad y nuestra conexión con los demás. Un libro que mezcla ciencia, filosofía y humanismo, invitándonos a repensar quiénes somos realmente y recordar que siempre estamos hechos de historias compartidas.