Transplantable osteosarcoma in mice. Structural characterization of a transplantable osteosarcoma obtained in an...

Light microscopic, histochemical and ultrastructural studies of a transplantable mouse osteosarcoma were carried out. The osteosarcoma grew in CBA mice after injection of cultured cells derived from a Dunn osteosarcoma. The tumour differed from the original Dunn osteosarcoma with respect to metastatic potential and structural features. The transplantable tumour was an anaplastic, richly vascularized fibroblastic osteosarcoma with alkaline phosphatase activity and rather sparse osteoid formation, resulting in death of the animals within 6 to 8 weeks. Virus particles were found intracellularly, mainly localized to cisterns of rough endoplasmic reticulum, and extracellularly often close to plasma membranes and collagen fibres. Sign suggestive of formation of collagen fibres by tumour cells were observed. A possible viral influence upon the tumour was suggested also by its growth behaviour in vitro. The results indicate that this new transplantable tumour, obtained in an allogenic system, represents a clonal derivative of the original Dunn osteosarcoma.