We have established a series of 20 colorectal cancer cell lines and performed cytogenetic and RFLP analyses to show that the
recurrent genetic abnormalities of chromosomes 1, 5, 17 and 18 associated with multistep tumorigenesis in colorectal cancer,
and frequently detected as recurrent abnormalities in primary tumours, are also retained in long-term established cell lines.
Earlier studies by us and other investigators showed that allelic losses of chromosomes 1 and 17 in primary colorectal cancers
predicted poorer survival for the patients (
P = 0.03). We utilized the cell lines to identify specific chromosomal sites or gene(s) on chromosomes 1 and 17 which confer
more aggressive phenotype. Cytogenetic deletions of chromosome 1p were detected in 14 out of the 20 (70%) cell lines, whereas
allelic deletions for 1p using polymorphic markers were detected in 13 out of 18 (72%) informative cell lines for at least
one polymorphic marker. We have performed Northern blotting, immunohistochemical staining (p53 mRNA, protein) and RFLP analysis
using several probes including p53 and nm23. RFLP analysis using a total of seven polymorphic markers located on 17p and 17q
arms showed allelic losses around
the p53 locus in 16 out of the 20 cell lines (80%), four of which were losses of the
p53 locus itself. In addition, seven cell lines (out of nine informative cases) also showed losses of the
nm23 gene, four with concurrent losses of the
p53 locus, while the remaining three were homozygous. In addition, five out of seven cell lines with
nm23 deletions were derived from hepatic metastatic tumours, and one cell line was obtained from recurrent tumour. A comparison
between allelic deletions of 1p and functional loss of
nm23 gene revealed a close association between these two events in cell lines derived from hepatic metastasis. Following immunohistochemical
staining, nine out of the twenty cell lines showed high levels (25–80%) of mutant p53, four showed intermediate levels (>20%),
and seven had undetectable levels of the protein. Of these seven, four showed complete absence of mRNA. Of the remaining three
cell lines one showed aberrant mRNA due to germline rearrangement of the
p53 gene, whereas in two cell lines normal levels of mRNA were present. Nineteen of the 20 cell lines had normal germline configurations
for the
p53 gene, while one showed a rearrangement. These data suggest that functional loss of
p53 and
nm23 genes accomplished by a variety of mechanisms may be associated with poor prognosis and survival. In addition, concurrent
deletions of chromosome regions 17p, 17q and 1p were closely associated with high-stage hepatic metastatic disease. These
cell lines with well-characterized genetic alterations and known clinical history provide an invaluable source of material
for various biological and clinical studies relating to multistep colorectal tumorigenesis.
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