Facts about Tasmanian Devil Carcinoma Transmission
- 05
Affected Tasmanian devils typically die within months of tumor appearance, as the growths obstruct feeding and cause starvation.
- 04
Facial tumors in Tasmanian devil carcinoma transmission originate from Schwann cells, the nerve-sheath cells that form the cancer's clonal lineage.
- 03
Tasmanian devil carcinoma transmission is enabled partly because the devils have unusually low genetic diversity, reducing immune recognition of foreign tumor cells.
- 02
The tumor cells transmitted between Tasmanian devils are genetically distinct from the host animal, meaning the cancer itself acts as a parasitic clonal cell line.
- 01
Devil facial tumor disease is one of only a few known transmissible cancers, spread between Tasmanian devils through biting during feeding and mating.