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Establishment of Epstein-Barr Virus Growth-transformed Lymphoblastoid Cell Lines
Published on: November 8, 2011
In vitro establishment of tumorigenic human B-lymphoblastoid cell lines transformed by Epstein-Barr virus
Tomoko Takahashi1, Tamae Kawabe, Yuichi Okazaki
1Center for Tsukuba Advanced Research Alliance, University of Tsukuba 1, Tennoudai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, Japan.
Abstract:
We studied tumorigenic and phenotypic characteristics of pre- and postimmortal human B-lymphoblastoid cell lines (LCLs) transformed by Epstein-Barr virus (EBV): preimmortal LCLs showed low telomerase activity and a normal diploid karyotype while postimmortal LCLs showed much higher telomerase activity and maintained a clonal aneuploidic state. Among five postimmortal LCLs tested, LCLs N0005 and N6803 formed colonies in agar medium and showed marked aneuploidy, and N6803 was transplantable into nude mice indicating that it had a complete malignant phenotype, but all preimmortal LCLs and the remaining three postimmortal LCLs lacked these characteristics. The products of tumor suppresser genes, p16(INK4A) and pRb, were downregulated in these two LCLs, and the p53 gene was mutated in N0005 LCL. We believe these results showed for the first time that some postimmortal EBV-transformed LCLs can become tumorigenic, contrary to previous reports, and that these LCLs provide an in vitro model of tumorigenesis induced by EBV.
