Occurrence and morphology of tumors induced in nude mice transplanted with chrysotile-transformed rat pleural mesothelial cells.

Rat pleural mesothelial cells treated in vitro with chrysotile fibers have been successfully transplanted into nude mice. Three cultures (1 untreated, 2 treated) were injected at passage 75; a fourth culture was obtained from a mesothelioma induced in rat by chrysotile fibers. Overall, tumors grew in each series, but the delay between cell injection and tumor formation was 22 wk with untreated cells whereas only 1 or 2 wk were needed with treated cells, and 1 wk with cells from in vivo-induced mesothelioma. Pathological study by light and electron microscopy of tumors is reported here and showed the mesothelial nature of the cells. Comparison between the ultrastructure of the injected cells and tumor cells indicated that the morphology of injected cells was retained in tumors even if the delay in tumor formation was long. These results suggest that this model is useful for investigating mesothelial cell transformation resulting from in vitro or in vivo exposure to certain carcinogens.