EFFECT OF HOST-ORGAN ENVIRONMENT ON THE IN-VIVO AND IN-VITRO BEHAVIOROF A MURINE MAMMARY ADENOCARCINOMA

We investigated the role that organ environment may play in determinin g the homing of disseminated cells from a murine mammary adenocarcinom a moderately metastatic to lung (M3). Conditioned medium (CM) from nor mal lung was able to enhance both local and metastatic growth. It incr eased the number of lung colonies when inoculated together with tumor cells via intravenous or separately via intraperitoneal route. Several in vitro studies were performed in order to elucidate possible mechan isms. It was shown that lung CM stimulated Cell growth the in vitro gr owth and the migration of M3 cells. Normal kidney and liver CM lacked all these capacities.