Establishment and characterization of a thymic carcinoma cell line (Ty-82) carrying t(15;19)(q15;p13) chromosome abnormality.

A new human cell line, designated Ty-82, was established from the pleural effusion of a 22-year-old woman with undifferentiated thymic carcinoma. This cell line consisted of primitive cells that were positive for alpha-naphthyl butyrate esterase and acid phosphatase. The cells were shown to express epithelial membrane antigen, but were completely negative for cytokeratin, carcinoembryonic antigen, glial fibrillary acidic protein, desmin, S-100 protein, lysozyme, Leu-7, HLA-DR (Ia), leukocyte common antigen, Ki-I antigen, T-cell antigens, B-cell antigens, myelomonocyte antigens, and Epstein-Barr-virus nuclear antigen. Electron microscopy showed that the cells were highly anaplastic, with no sign of cellular differentiation to any lineages. The Ty-82 cell line was found to have a karyotype of 46,XX,t(15;19)(q15;p13), being identical to that of the patient's tumor cells. Four of 5 nude mice inoculated sub-cutaneously with Ty-82 cells developed tumors which displayed a histological picture similar to the original tumor. Thymic carcinoma is a recently recognized entity, and its cellular and clinical behavior are poorly understood. The newly established thymic carcinoma cell line would provide a useful tool for the better understanding of this rare disease.