5 NEWLY ESTABLISHED ESOPHAGEAL-CARCINOMA CELL-LINES - PHENOTYPIC AND IMMUNOLOGICAL CHARACTERIZATION

The derivation of permanent cell lines from 40 resected oesophageal ca rcinomas has been attempted. Five long-term lines have been establishe d from three adenocarcinomas, one mixed carcinoma and one squamous car cinoma. Molecular and cellular analyses have been carried out on the l ines and clones derived from them. Karyotype analysis indicates geneti c Variation among the clones. HLA-A, -B and -C is expressed constituti vely but not HLA-DR. ICAM-1-expressing phenotypes may have arisen duri ng adaptation to long-term culture. All lines are capable of response to interferon-gamma(IFN-gamma) and all produce transforming growth fac tor beta 1 (TGF-beta 1). Two lines are resistant to the inhibitory gro wth effects of the latter, possibly contributing to malignancy. It is anticipated that these lines, originating from histologically differen t carcinomas, will provide a valuable, continuous resource for the inv estigation and treatment of these aggressive tumours.