High-resolution microscopes have captured images of cancer cells transferring biological material to less-malignant cells, making these cells more cancerous.

Many cells, including cancerous ones, shed tiny membrane-bound sacs called vesicles that contain a variety of molecules including RNA; these sacs are then taken up by other cells. Jacco van Rheenen at the Hubrecht Institute in Utrecht, the Netherlands, and his co-workers imaged human breast-cancer cells in real time in live mice. They found that these cells release vesicles carrying messenger RNA transcribed from genes involved in cell migration and metastasis. After engulfing these vesicles, human cells that were less malignant began to migrate faster than those that did not take up the vesicles. The transferred genetic material also boosted the ability of the cells to spread to other organs.

This vesicle transfer occurred within the same tumour and also between distant ones.

Cell http://doi.org/4sj (2015)