Immunocytochemical analysis of cell lines derived from solid tumors

Area of Science:

• Oncology
• Cell Biology
• Immunohistochemistry

Background:

• Antibodies targeting tissue-specific antigens are crucial for determining tumor origin.
• Continuous cell lines are vital tools in cancer research.
• Ensuring the fidelity of cell line markers to their original tumor type is essential for reliable research.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the accuracy of selected tissue markers in identifying the histological origin of 167 solid tumor-derived cell lines from the DSMZ cell line bank.
• To identify reliable markers for subclassification of carcinoma cell lines.
• To evaluate the utility of various markers in characterizing cell line origins.

Main Methods:

• Testing a panel of antibodies against intermediate filament proteins and other tissue-specific antigens.
• Analyzing 167 solid tumor-derived continuous cell lines from the DSMZ cell line bank.
• Correlating immunoprofiles with known tumor types.

Main Results:

• 93% of carcinoma cell lines expressed keratin filaments, confirming their epithelial origin.
• Keratin 7 (CK7) antibody differentiated between colon and pancreas carcinoma cell lines.
• Non-carcinoma cell lines generally lacked keratin but expressed vimentin; specific markers like GFAP, neurofilaments, desmin, and HMB-45 were detected in relevant cell lines (glioma, neuroblastoma, rhabdomyosarcoma, melanoma).
• Markers like PSA, CA125, and thyroglobulin showed limited utility.

Conclusions:

• Cell lines largely retain markers of their original tumor type, but not all.
• Specific markers are effective for characterizing the histological origin of cell lines.
• The findings raise questions about the authenticity of some previously submitted cell lines.
• Comprehensive immunoprofiles are available online for 167 solid tumor and 131 hematopoietic cell lines.