Growth characteristics of N-[4-(5-nitro-2-furyl)-2-thiazolyl]-formamide (FANFT)-induced mouse bladder tumor lines in a human tumor stem cell assay.

Four N-[4-(5-nitro-2-furyl)-2-thiazolyl]-Formamide (FANFT)-induced mouse bladder tumor (MBT) lines were tested for their ability to form colonies in a tumor stem cell assay. Anticancer drug testing was done using this assay to determine whether reproducible colony survival curves could be be produced. All four cell lines produced colonies at 10--14 days, whether taken from culture or murine tumor. Cloning efficiencies ranged from 0.29% to 1.93% from culture and from 0.005% to 0.05% from the murine source. Growth characteristics were described. Cells from colonies were histologically similar to the original cells plated. A linear relationship existed between the number of cells plated and the number of colonies produced. In vitro drug studies were reproducible and correlated with in vivo data. Therefore, MBT lines can be used for in vitro drug testing in a tumor stem cell assay and may be useful in selecting active chemotherapeutic agents in the murine tumor model.