Quantitation of One Aspect of Karyotype Instability Associated with Neoplastic Transformation in Chinese Hamster Cells

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the quantitation of one aspect of karyotype instability associated with neoplastic transformation in Chinese hamster cells. Karyotype instability is an important event in neoplastic transformation; it often precedes other in vitro transformation events, such as morphological changes, growth in soft agar, and growth in 1% serum. The analysis of karyotype instability is limited by the resolution of a light microscope to the detection of single band changes. The analysis of single band changes is further limited by (1) variability in banding clarity; (2) inability to quantify the frequency of occurrence and the amount of material involved; (3) the heterogeneity and replication fidelity of a single band; and (4) the kinetics of appearance and disappearance of such an event. Flow karyotype analysis, when combined with banding procedures, provides the quantitation and statistical accuracy needed to overcome these limitations.