Surface charge in foreign body carcinogenesis.

The importance of surface charge in foreign body carcinogenesis was evaluated by implanting in C3H/HeJ male mice, bipolar polystyrene thermoelectrets formed in variously charged electrical fields. Charged electrets had tumor rates similar to control groups. The cumulative probability of tumor development was highest in the charged electret group being 0.58 at 133 weeks after implantation. The tumor rate for all charged electrets was 27% as compared to 17% and 6% for the control groups. The latent period of tumor induction varied little between groups and averaged approximately 700 days. No conclusions regarding the tumorigenic effect of electropositive versus electronegative sides of the electret were made although the majority of tumors arose on the electronegative (body) side of the electrets. An occasional tumor (2/25) arose on both sides of a single electret. The antigenicities of tumors tested by excise and challenge techniques were weak. The immunologic relationship between top and bottom growing tumors on a single electret could not be adequately determined because of the weak antigenicity.