Requirement of bromodeoxyuridine for the maintenance of "transformed" characteristics in bromodeoxyuridine dependent cells.

A bromodeoxyuridine(BUdr) dependent cell line, called B4, Which requires BUdr not only for optimal growth but also for the maintenance of the non-contact inhibited state was described previously. We have now shown that contact inhibition in the B4 cells in the absence of BUdr is associated with a marked decrease in the percent of cells synthesizing DNA. The transition to the contact inhibited state in the absence of BUdr does not seem to be due to changes in cyclic AMP levels. It has also been shown that several but not all of the characteristics which distinguish transformed from untransformed cells also distinguish B4 cells grown in the presence of BUdr from B4 cells grown in the absence of BUdr. In addition to being contact inhibited, B4 cells grown in the absence of BUdr have a higher serum requirement, grow less well in soft agar, and are less agglutinable by wheat germ agglutinin than B4 cells grown in the presence of BUdr. Agglutinability by concanavalin A, however, is the same for B4 cells grown in the presence and absence of BUdr. Dependent cells maintained in the presence of BUdr do not form tumors and it is not yet clear how the transformed characteristics of the dependent cells are related to malignancy.