A new in vitro cell line established from human large cell variant of oat cell lung cancer.

A new tissue culture cell line, SHP-77, has been established from explant cultures of a primary human lung cancer. Although the latter exhibited histological features of the so-called large or polygonal cell undifferentiated variant, neurosecretory granules were detected ultrastructurally in cells of the original tumor, culture line, and neoplasms developing after transplantation of the latter in nude mice. These features attest to the identity of the original tumor as a large-cell variant of oat cell cancer. In addition, electron microscopy revealed the presence of gland formation and intracytoplasmic lamellar bodies in the cells of SHP-77. This information indicates the potential for varied differentiation and morphological expression of so-called undifferentiated lung cancer cells and is pertinent to nosological considerations concerning human lung cancer. The cell line has maintained its morphological, karyotypic, chromosomal, and growth characteristics after transplantation to nude mice. Because of this stability, SHP-77 appears to represent a propitious cell line for in vitro and in vivo biological and therapeutic studies of this type of lung cancer.