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Growth and Metastasis of Fresh Human Melanoma Tissue in Mice with Severe Combined Immunodeficiency¹

Department of Microbiology and Immunology [L. L. H., R. K.], Division of Medical Oncology, Department of Medicine [D. B.], and Department of Pathology [P. M.], Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia 19107; and Department of Dermatology, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine [C. J., G. M.], Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104

Cryopreserved cell suspensions of freshly excised melanoma metastases from nine patients were injected s.c. into C.B-17 severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) mice. All 9 tumors grew as s.c. masses and six of nine were successfully transplanted into other SCID mice. Transplant inocula as low as 5 x 10⁵ cells resulted in 100% tumor incidence. Moreover, seven of nine tumors metastasized, five from the original s.c. implants and two from transplanted s.c. tumors. Metastases were detected mainly in the lungs but also were found in abdominal viscera (liver, spleen, and pancreas) and thoracic lymph nodes. Flow cytometric analysis showed that expression of a panel of melanoma antigens, melanoma-associated proteoglycan, ganglioside G_D3, and ganglioside G_D2, was maintained with SCID passage. The original tumor inocula contained a variable percentage of tumor-associated lymphocytes (1–76%). Flow cytometry analysis indicated that these were mainly CD3+ T-cells. However, there was no correlation between the percentage of tumor-associated lymphocytes and the time required for development of a palpable tumor after s.c. injection or the ability to metastasize. These results demonstrate the growth and spontaneous metastasis of fresh human melanoma in SCID mice and suggest that this model could be important for therapeutic and basic biological studies.

¹ This work was supported by Grants CA 39248, CA 38951, CA 40358, and AR 39674 from the NIH and by funds from the Nat Pincus Trust.

² To whom requests for reprints should be addressed, at Thomas Jefferson University, 1015 Walnut St., Suite 1005, Philadelphia, PA 19107.

Received 2/ 5/91. Accepted 7/ 9/91.