Nonrandom abnormalities in chromosome 1 in human testicular cancers.

Trypsin G banding was performed on metaphase chromosomes from 14 cell lines derived from primary tumors or metastases of 11 patients with testicular cancer. Most of the cell lines, 11 of 14, have a modal number between 51 and 61. All lines have numerical and structural changes involving chromosome 1 with trisomy of the q arm being the common aberration. Break points in chromosome 1 were nonrandom, being concentrated in the regions of p12, q12, p36, and p22, which resulted in morphologically identical marker chromosomes in different cases. These changes probably are not artifacts of cell culture. In one instance, three lines derived from the same patient, one from tissue removed at operation, and two from separate metastases removed at autopsy nearly 3 years later after unsuccessful radiotherapy and chemotherapy had identical chromosome compositions. In another case, lines derived from a primary tumor and a metastasis from the same patient also had identical marker chromosomes. The consistent involvement of chromosome 1 in aberrations may be associated with the highly malignant nature of testicular cancers.