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Human oral malignant melanoma in cell culture
Author(s) -
Brown M. M. Lane,
Borland R.,
Milton G. W.
Publication year - 1966
Publication title -
cancer
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.052
H-Index - 304
eISSN - 1097-0142
pISSN - 0008-543X
DOI - 10.1002/1097-0142(196605)19:5<648::aid-cncr2820190508>3.0.co;2-k
Subject(s) - melanoma , melanosome , cell , pathology , cell culture , organelle , cell type , medicine , melanocyte , subculture (biology) , fibroblast , electron microscope , biology , melanin , cancer research , microbiology and biotechnology , genetics , botany , physics , optics
This article reports the morphological cell types found in cell culture of 2 oral melanomatoma; it is the first report in which human malignant melanoma cells from oral tumors have been grown in vitro. Premelanosomes and melanosomes were detected at each subculture up to and including the fourth. These organelles were not found in subsequent passages and the ubiquitous fibroblast‐like cell was the commonest cell type after 10 passages. The fine structure of the pigment “receptor” cells in the cultures is such that a dual origin of oral melanoma is proposed. Four cell types were identified with the electron microscope, 3 of which could represent malignant cells. In spite of the close morphological similarities between the cells grown from these cases and cutaneous malignant melanoma the clinical behavior was different. It is suggested, therefore, that the behavior of the malignant melanocyte cannot be predicted from either cell culture, light microscopy or E.M.