Generation and Purification of Tetraploid Cells

Tetraploid cells are genetically unstable and have the capacity to promote the development and/or progression of human malignancies. It is now estimated that ~40 % of all solid tumors have passed through a tetraploid intermediate stage at some point during their development. Understanding the biological characteristics of tetraploid cells that impart oncogenic properties is therefore a highly relevant and fundamentally important aspect of cancer biology. Here, we describe strategies to efficiently generate and purify tetraploid cells for use in cell biological studies.