Establishment and characterization of six new human endometrial adenocarcinoma cell lines

The endometrial carcinoma cell lines EC-MZ-1, 2, 3, 5, 9, and 11 were established between 1986 and 1990. Four cell cultures were started from endometrial tissue, one from ascites, and one from a lymph node metastasis. Lines have to date been subcultured up to 180 times and the doubling time varies between 26 hr and 3 weeks. Immunocytochemically the coexpression of cytokeratin (predominantly simple-epithelial cytokeratin polypeptides) and vimentin intermediate filaments was detectable in all cell lines, but three lines (EC-MZ-5, 9, 11) expressed vimentin only at low level. By transmission electron microscopy the tumor cells exhibited features of epithelial differentiation. After subcutaneous transplantation into nude mice three lines (EC-MZ-1, 2, 5) produced slow-growing tumors. The histological classification of these tumors ranged from moderately differentiated adenocarcinoma to undifferentiated carcinoma and closely corresponded to the original tumor. Even after long-term in vitro culture, without any addition of estrogens to the culture medium, the moderately differentiated receptor-positive cell line (EC-MZ-2) retained its morphological differentiation. The cells were propagated without estrogens in the culture medium. The estrogen and progesterone receptor levels of cultured cells were determined. Three lines (EC-MZ-1, 2, 3) were positive for the progesterone receptor in low passage number only, the other cell lines were negative for both receptors. The transplantable lines were investigated for hormonal receptor expression in ovariectomized nude mice. In the moderately differentiated cell line (EC-MZ-2) we observed an enhanced expression of the estrogen receptor under optimal stimulation of the nude mouse with estradiol benzoate. There was no effect on the expression of the progesterone receptor.