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A New Interpretation of Cytoplasmic Inheritance and a Series of Controlled Verification Experimental Designs Based on Tong Dizhou’s “Tong Fish” Experiment

发布时间：

2026-07-25

A New Interpretation of Cytoplasmic Inheritance and a Series of Controlled Verification Experimental Designs Based on Tong Dizhou’s “Tong Fish” Experiment

Sun Zuodong

Editorial Note

This paper presents a forward-looking academic hypothesis within cellular bioelectrical genetics, consisting solely of theoretical deductions pending experimental verification. Peer researchers are welcome to conduct relevant studies to validate or refute the framework. All experimental designs proposed herein are limited to basic research on fish ova, and no manipulations or deductions involving human embryos or human germ cells are included, fully complying with scientific and ethical boundaries.

In the development of life sciences in China, Tong Dizhou’s landmark “Tong Fish” experiment stands as an epoch-making milestone.

Brief Recap of the Original Experiment

The experiment used fertilized eggs of crucian carp and common carp. Nuclei with intact nuclear membranes were extracted from crucian carp fertilized eggs, while the native nuclei of common carp egg cells were removed, leaving the common carp’s egg cell membrane and cytoplasm intact. The crucian carp nuclei were then transplanted into the enucleated common carp egg cells for incubation, yielding fry with trait combinations from both parent species—the so-called “Tong Fish”.

This experiment overturned the long-standing consensus that heredity is unilaterally governed by nuclear DNA. Restricted by the research technologies of his era, mainstream academia has long attributed the mixed biparental traits of Tong Fish to mRNA and soluble proteins in the cytoplasm, which were thought to carry additional regulatory genetic information. Drawing on cellular bioelectrical genetics, the potassium channel origami windmill model, and the dynamic DNA origami windmill tetramer model, this paper proposes a self-consistent new interpretive framework for this phenomenon.

Multiple existing studies have confirmed functional potassium ion channels on both cell membranes and nuclear envelopes. A potassium channel is assembled from four subunits to form a protein tetramer enclosing an inverted conical pore, defined in this theory as the potassium channel origami windmill structure. A critical distinction must be made: this membrane-bound protein tetramer is functionally distinct from the intranuclear dynamic DNA origami windmill tetramer assembled from four sets of double-stranded DNA. Though they share homologous structural paradigms, the two structures interact and coordinate with one another. The membrane potassium channel tetramers store top-tier genetic information via their spatial conformation, spin rhythms, and bound nucleic acid fragments; intranuclear dynamic DNA origami windmill tetramers carry genomic sequence information.

Core Hypothesis of This Paper

The top-tier deterministic genetic information originates from potassium channel protein tetramers embedded on cell membranes and nuclear envelopes. Inside the nucleus, topological units of dynamic DNA origami windmill tetramers store gene sequence information. These two systems coordinate to regulate the full genetic programming of cells. The cytoplasm merely acts as a medium for transmitting electric field signals and a space for material metabolism, and it does not carry deterministic genetic information.

A sustained bioelectric field forms across cell membranes. The two sets of potassium channel tetramers on cell and nuclear membranes exchange structural information through this bioelectric field, modulating the topological configuration and spin motion of intranuclear DNA origami windmill tetramers. This remodels DNA replication and gene expression patterns, ultimately producing offspring with blended traits from both parent species. mRNA functions only as an auxiliary messenger during material transport and does not dominate the shaping of phenotypic traits.

A key overlooked detail: micromanipulation for nuclear transplantation cannot isolate fully bare nuclei. Donor nuclei inevitably retain their nuclear envelopes and the embedded potassium channel protein tetramers, which are co-transferred into recipient egg cells.

To demarcate the separate functional roles of cell membranes, cytoplasm, and nuclei, this paper proposes a set of combinatorial controlled experiments. Tong Dizhou only completed a single experimental group in his original work; multi-group component replacement trials using the method of elimination can verify whether the cytoplasm bears genetic regulatory functions.

Two fish species (Species A and Species B) with drastically distinct phenotypic traits are selected for the trials:

Group	Cellular Component Composition	Brief Experimental Procedure	Predicted Developmental Outcome
Experimental Group 1 (Reference: Tong Dizhou’s Original Trial)	Species A cell membrane + Species A cytoplasm + Species B nucleus	Enucleate Species A egg cells, retain native cell membrane and cytoplasm, transplant a Species B nucleus	Offspring display mixed traits of Species A and Species B
Experimental Group 2 (Cytoplasm Replacement Only)	Species A cell membrane + Species B cytoplasm + Species A nucleus	Preserve the cell membrane and nucleus of Species A egg cells; remove native cytoplasm and inject cytoplasm extracted from Species B	Offspring predominantly exhibit Species A traits, with no stable exogenous Species B phenotypes
Experimental Group 3 (Cell Membrane Replacement Only)	Species B cell membrane + Species A cytoplasm + Species A nucleus	Strip the native cell membrane of Species A egg cells, retain cytoplasm and nucleus, re-encapsulate with cell membrane from Species B	Offspring develop blended traits of Species A and Species B
Experimental Group 4 (Membrane Retention; Cytoplasm + Nucleus Replacement)	Species A cell membrane + Species B cytoplasm + Species B nucleus	Retain Species A cell membrane; clear native cytoplasm and nucleus, fill with Species B cytoplasm and transplant a Species B nucleus	Offspring stably retain characteristic traits of Species A
Control Group 1	Intact unmanipulated Species A egg cell	No micromanipulation performed	All offspring show pure Species A phenotypes
Control Group 2	Species A egg cell (Sham Operation)	Micropuncture only, no replacement of any cellular components	All offspring show pure Species A phenotypes

Supplementary Notes on Technical Feasibility

Most published existing studies adopt microinjection of trace exogenous cytoplasm. Complete extraction and full replacement of the entire cytoplasmic matrix of xenogeneic fish egg cells have not been widely implemented in controlled trials. This operation presents technical hurdles: aspiration of cytoplasm easily damages cellular structures, and precise maintenance of intracellular osmotic pressure is required, demanding high proficiency in micromanipulation. Nevertheless, relying on mature microinjection systems for fish egg cells, the full experimental design outlined above is technically viable and can be carried out by qualified laboratories for validation.

If experimental results align with the predictions above, the traditional academic viewpoint can be falsified via elimination: simple replacement of cytoplasm fails to introduce exogenous interspecies traits, proving the cytoplasm lacks deterministic genetic regulatory capacity. The mixed biparental traits observed in Tong Fish arise fundamentally from recombinant structural information exchange between heterologous cell membrane potassium channel tetramers and the potassium channel tetramers on the envelope of transplanted donor nuclei.

Conclusion

Scholars have long attributed the Tong Fish phenomenon to biochemical substances within the cytoplasm, and conventionally believed all hereditary information of an organism is encoded solely in nuclear DNA. Under the theoretical framework proposed herein, genetic regulation operates as a nested hierarchical system within cells: potassium channel protein tetramers on cell and nuclear membranes store the top-tier deterministic genetic information, serving as the origin of genetic control. Intranuclear DNA assembles into topological units of dynamic DNA origami windmill tetramers that carry gene sequences. These two systems coordinate to respond to bioelectrical signals and execute genetic instructions. The complete set of deterministic hereditary information is not confined to free DNA sequences inside the nucleus. The cytoplasm functions merely as a support for signal transmission and metabolic processes.

Professor Tong Dizhou’s pioneering experiment has left an invaluable research paradigm for future generations. As theoretical understanding and microscopic technologies continue to advance, new interpretive perspectives may emerge for this classic experiment. This paper publicly proposes a full experimental roadmap for global research teams to validate or falsify the proposed hypothesis.