A HUMAN SEMINOMA XENOGRAFT MODEL WITH REGIONAL LYMPH NODE METASTASIS

AbstractPurpose: To establish a seminoma orthopic model with lymph node metastasis to investigate the factors related to the lymphophilic behavior of seminoma cells.Materials and Methods: Testicular seminoma xenografts were established by the inoculation of small fragments from subcutaneous (s.c.) xenografts that had previously been established in severe combined immunodeficient (SCID) mice with a supraclavicular lymph node metastasis from a human seminoma. Hematologic dissemination of tumor cells was analyzed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification of the human beta-globin gene. Xenograft messenger RNA levels of metastasis-related genes were examined by reverse transcription (RT)-PCR.Results: Testicular seminoma xenografts grew in 32/32 (100%) of the inoculated mice, of which 15 mice (47%) developed macroscopic metastasis to the renal hilar lymph node. Circulating tumor cells and tumor cell shedding in the lung and liver were detectable by PCR assay in 25/32 (78%), 32/32 (100%), and 27/32 (84%) ...