Phenotypic and genotypic characteristics of a cell line from a squamous cell carcinoma of human skin.

A human cell line (SCL-1) from a poorly differentiating cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) ws studied through 20 passages during 2 years. Cells maintained their original morphology with low degree of keratinization, as indicated by light and electron microscopy. The keratin peptide pattern resembled the type in SCC tumors, and the corresponding filaments were detected by immunofluorescence at all passage levels. Cells did not grow in soft agar but formed tumor-like nodules in an "organotypic" culture assay (on lifted collagen gels) and grew invasively after transplantation to immunosuppressed inbred C3H mice. After injection into BALB/c nu/nu mice, tumors of SCC morphology were formed. The hypodiploid tumor stem-line was maintained for about 10 passages, when a shift to hyperploidy started, as determined by chromosome and DNA flow microfluorometric analyses. Two stable marker chromosomes (in 100 and 70% of the metaphases, respectively), involving chromosomes 7 and 9, strongly indicated a monoclonal origin of this cell line.