Ruth Voss

A New Human Ovarian Carcinoma Cell Line: Establishment and Analysis of Tumor-Associated Markers

In the present study we describe the establishment and characteristics of a new human tumor cell line (OV-1063) positive for carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) originating from ovarian metastatic tumor cells. Analysis of the cultured cells during their in vitro adaptation period revealed while the primary culture exhibited a low proportion of CEA-positive cells, this proportion increased with culture passages and eventually more than 90% of the cells in the established line were CEA-positive. Thus, during the period of adaptation to in vitro growth, a selection for CEA-positive cells took place but the amount of CEA secreted per each positive cell seemed to be constant. Several tumor-associated characteristics were found positive on the established OV-1063 cell line. The in vitro growing cell line exhibited an abnormal chromosome pattern with a near-trisomy karyotype for some chromosomes, colony formation in soft agar as well as positive staining with a monoclonal antibody B38.1. Culture supernatants of the OV-1063 cells contained significant amounts of CEA as well as CA-125 antigen which is an ovarian-carcinoma-associated antigen.

Association of a chromosomal abnormality with lymphocytes having both T and B markers in a patient with lymphoproliferative disease.

The lymphocytes of a patient with leukemic lymphosarcoma were found to have an unusual surface phenotype in that they bound both sheep erythrocytes (a T cell marker) and complement-coated erythrocytes (a B cell marker) but lacked other B cell surface characteristics. Marker chromosomes were present in these cells, but not in other, phenotypically normal cells from the same patient. This case may provide a clue to the chromosomal origin of some lymphocyte surface markers in man.

Prenatal diagnosis of ataxia telangiectasia

INCREASED SPONTANEOUS CHROMOSOME BREAKAGE rates in peripheral blood lymphocytes and cultured skin fibroblasts is characteristic of ataxia telangiectasia. 1 Recently, we have shown the presence of a clastogenic factor, a low molecular weight peptide, in plasma of patients with AT and in conditioned medium from their cultured skin flbroblasts2 ~ Normal human lymphocytes cultured in AT fibr0blast conditioned medium or in plasma from AT patients show an increased chromosome breakage rate (0.10 breaks per cell) as compared to controls (0.00 to 0.03 breaks per cell). In this report we describe the prenatal diagnosis of a fetus at risk for AT, based on the presence of the clastogenic factor in the amniotic fluid, as well as on spontaneous chromosome breakage and a chromosomal translocation involving chromosome 14 in the cultured amniotic fluid cells. The diagnosis has been confirmed by an increased spontaneous chromosome breakage rate in the fetal amniotic membrane cells.

Establishment and characterization of a new permanent cell line (GDM-1) from a patient with myelomonoblastic leukemia☆

The GDM-1 permanent cell line was established from the peripheral blood of a patient with a Philadelphia chromosome negative myeloproliferative disorder, after transformation to acute myelomonoblastic leukemia. The GDM-1 cells exhibited the same characteristics as those isolated from the peripheral blood of the patient prior to death: cells contained non-specific esterase sensitive to fluoride, myeloperoxidase, lysozyme (muramidase), and exhibited both Fc and complement (C3) receptors but lacked B- and T-cell surface markers including T-associated antigens. E-rosetting capacity, surface and intracytoplasmic immunoglobulins and EBV determined nuclear antigen (EBNA). The GDM-1 cells bore the 1a receptor and the myeloid leukemia antigen (M-1). The karyotype of the cultured leukemic cells showed the same specific chromosomal abnormalities present in the monoblasts obtained from the peripheral blood prior to death, indicating that the cell line was derived from the original leukemic cells.

The nature of reverse mutations in Drosophila melanogaster.

Abstract A selection system for the screening of reversions has been constructed and used to test reversions of lethals located in the proximal region of the X chromosome of Drosophila and of Kpn mutations. Spontaneous and induced reversions have been screened, X-rays and ethyl methanesulphonate (EMS) being the mutagens used in the induction experiments. No genuine back-mutation was found in 6·10 5 gametes scored. Sterile reversions of all four lethals tested were obtained. Their frequency suggested that at least in three of the lethals the sterile reversions represented “escapers” of the lethal effect rather than true revertants. Three fertile reversions of l x4 were found and analyzed. All three were autosomal suppressors, located on the second chromosome, allelic to each other, dominant in males and recessive in females. One fertile reversion of l 3DES was found to be an X-linked suppressor. It is suggested that this suppressor is a Y-suppressed lethal, showing a V-type position effect, resulting from an aberration included in the proximal heterochromatin of the X chromosome. Reversions of Kpn were obtained at a similar rate to that found in previous reports 22 . The absence of true back-mutants in our experiments, in contrast to findings in previous reports, is discussed. From the existing literature on spontaneous and induced back-mutations in Drosophila melanogaster it appears that for several mutations the rates of forward and back-mutation are of the same order of magnitude. It is suggested that reported cases of back-mutations represent mainly inter- and intrachromosomal recombination in duplicated regions rather than mutational events and that the frequency of true back-mutation in Drosophila is usually of an order of magnitude, similar to that known for microorganisms and fungi.