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<p>In contemporary life sciences, <i>memory</i> is increasingly attributed well beyond its paradigmatic uses in psychology and cognitive science.Immunological and epigenetic memory are among the best-known unconventional uses. While such cases are often analyzed in isolation, we argue that these extensions of the memory concept are better understood as instances of a broader phenomenon: the attribution of memory-like properties to cells. Indeed, the term “cellular memory” encompasses both immunological and epigenetic uses, but it has also proliferated across diverse biological contexts over the past century. What, then, does "cellular memory" designate? This article aims to examine that question. Combining bibliometric and conceptual analysis, we identify six recurrent uses of the term "cellular memory"—immunological, epigenetic, synaptic, metabolic, unicellular, and transplant-related—which we classify into heredity-associated, plasticity-associated, and hybrid modalities. We trace the trajectories of these uses, showing both the long-standing dominance of immunology and their more recent diversification across biological domains. Building on a distinction between the phenomenon of memory and its underlying mechanisms, we propose a general characterization of cellular memory, identify features specific to the cellular level, and compare them with conventional forms of learning. We argue that cellular memory is heuristically productive and can be understood as a “definition as a hypothesis.”</p>

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Of what is “cellular memory” the name? Perspectives across the life sciences

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2026年7月30日

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  • Héloïse Athéa,
  • Guillaume Montagnac

摘要

In contemporary life sciences, memory is increasingly attributed well beyond its paradigmatic uses in psychology and cognitive science.Immunological and epigenetic memory are among the best-known unconventional uses. While such cases are often analyzed in isolation, we argue that these extensions of the memory concept are better understood as instances of a broader phenomenon: the attribution of memory-like properties to cells. Indeed, the term “cellular memory” encompasses both immunological and epigenetic uses, but it has also proliferated across diverse biological contexts over the past century. What, then, does "cellular memory" designate? This article aims to examine that question. Combining bibliometric and conceptual analysis, we identify six recurrent uses of the term "cellular memory"—immunological, epigenetic, synaptic, metabolic, unicellular, and transplant-related—which we classify into heredity-associated, plasticity-associated, and hybrid modalities. We trace the trajectories of these uses, showing both the long-standing dominance of immunology and their more recent diversification across biological domains. Building on a distinction between the phenomenon of memory and its underlying mechanisms, we propose a general characterization of cellular memory, identify features specific to the cellular level, and compare them with conventional forms of learning. We argue that cellular memory is heuristically productive and can be understood as a “definition as a hypothesis.”