Disseminated (metastatic) tumors in nude mice produced by intravenous injection of cells of human and nonhuman neurogenic tumor lines.

Cells of two human glioma lines (UC-35AG, UC-58EG), a human medulloblastoma line (UC-51MB), two rat glioma lines C6, RG2), and a rat schwannoma line (Lew-MS) were injected i.v. into male nude mice (BALB/c nu/nu). Each animal was injected with 10(6) viable cells of a particular line; for each line there was a group of eight to nine animals. The mice developed disseminated (metastatic) tumors from all lines. The incidence of mice developing metastatic tumors was different for the various lines: 2/8 for the UC-34AG, 7/9 for the UC-58EG, 1/8 for the UC-51MB, 7/8 for the C6 line, 8/8 for the RG2 and 1/9 for the Lew-MS line. The shortest survival of the mice with tumors was observed with C6 (all died on days 10-14 post injection), and with RG2 (all died from day 32 to day 39 following injection). With the remaining lines, all mice survived until they were killed on day 40 after injection. Most frequently the tumors developed in the lung. Other organs, e.g., kidney or liver, were sometimes also involved, but usually to a considerably lesser degree than the lung. Metastases never developed in the CNS. It was observed that tumors of certain glioma lines tended to grow in the lung in characteristic patterns and involved or spared other organs.