Electric Eel Shocks Transfer Genes to Nearby Animals

A recent investigation indicates that the electrical discharge from an electric eel is potent enough to facilitate the transfer of genetic material from the surroundings into the cells of neighboring animals.

In laboratory conditions, electroporation refers to applying an electric field to cells to enhance the permeability of their cell membrane. This enables the introduction of foreign DNA and is employed in creating knockout mice for research experiments, as well as in tumor treatment and various gene- and cell-based therapies.

A recent investigation conducted by Nagoya University researchers in Japan proposes that the electric eel can naturally perform electroporation.

Electric Eels in the Amazon River as Potential Natural Electroporation Agents with Far-Reaching Implications

Atsuo Iida, the study’s corresponding author, remarked, “I thought electroporation might happen in nature. I realized that electric eels in the Amazon River could well act as a power source, organisms living in the surrounding area could act as recipient cells, and environmental DNA fragments released into the water would become foreign genes, causing genetic recombination in the surrounding organisms because of electric discharge.”

Electric eels indeed serve as a formidable power source, being the most potent volt-producing creatures on Earth, capable of releasing up to 860 volts in a single electric organ discharge (EOD). In an experiment, researchers placed an electric eel in a freshwater tank containing six-day-old zebrafish larvae. They introduced DNA carrying green fluorescent protein (GFP) into the tank water.

As the eel emitted an EOD while consuming an anesthetized goldfish introduced as prey, the researchers observed the zebrafish larvae under a stereomicroscope post-EOD exposure. Notably, clusters of multiple cells displaying intense green fluorescence under UV light were identified. In total, 5.3% of the larvae exhibited GFP-positive cells.

Insights from Atsuo Iida

Atsuo Iida, the study’s lead author, explained, “This indicates that the discharge from the electric eel promoted gene transfer to the cells, even though eels have different shapes of pulses and unstable voltage compared to machines usually used in electroporation. Electric eels and other organisms that generate electricity could affect genetic modification in nature.”

The researchers emphasize that their study solely presents evidence of environmental gene transduction and does not establish whether the transferred gene functions as a heritable factor in offspring. Although they attempted to verify heritable transgenesis using single-celled organisms, including E. coli, no positive results were obtained, likely due to the eel’s generated voltage being around 200 to 250 V, potentially insufficient for electroporation. In contrast, machine-based electroporation for E. coli typically involves discharges exceeding 1 kV. Further investigations are required to delve into the hereditary aspects of electric discharge-mediated transgenesis in natural environments.

Despite these challenges, the researchers express enthusiasm about their discoveries. Lead author Atsuo Iida stated, “I believe that attempts to discover new biological phenomena based on such ‘unexpected’ and ‘outside-the-box’ ideas will enlighten the world about the complexities of living organisms and trigger breakthroughs in the future.”

Read the original article on: New Atlas

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