CHROMOSOME ANALYSES OF HUMAN TUMOURS FOLLOWING HETEROTRANSPLANTATION TO THE MOUSE MUTANT <i>NUDE</i>

Abstract

The purpose of the present investigation was to study the chromosomal constitution in a number of solid human tumours after transplantation to the mouse mutant nude , suffering from thymic aplasia. The nude mouse was found to have a normal murine karyotype. The chromosome analyses were made on tumour tissue, using a direct method without previous cultivation. The most important result of the investigation is that only cells with chromosomes of human type were found. The majority of the cells analyzed were hyperdiploid, presenting an appreciable variation in the chromosome numbers. In some cases it was possible to transplant the tumours in the nude mice serially. In tumour cells both from early and late passages, only karyotypes which contained nothing but human chromosomes were found. Hence, no hybridization or total chromosomal species shift was revealed in the heterotransplantation system employed.