In vitro characterization of four N-[4-(5-nitro-2-furyl)-2-thiazolyl] formamide (FANFT) induced mouse bladder tumors.

Four longterm murine bladder tumor cell lines were established in vitro. The 4 lines were initiated from primary N-[4-(5-nitro-2-furyl)-2-thiazolyl] formamide (FANFT) induced murine bladder tumors arising in C3H/He mice. Each was maintained as a solid tumor in syngeneic mice for at least 30 generations before initiation in tissue culture. The cell lines MBT-2, MBT-8, MBT-409 and MBT-683, have been subcultured over 75 times in vitro for 18 months. They are all epithelial, grow in islands on plastic Petri dishes before confluent growth and form colonies in soft agar suspension culture. Morphologic studies indicate that all 4 lines have epithelial characteristics and karyotypic studies indicate that all lines have polyploidy and marker chromosomes. Population doubling times range from 10 to 26 hours and are consistent for each line.