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Studies on the biology of the mycoplasma‐induced “stimulation” of BHK21‐c13 cells
Author(s) -
Russell W. C.,
Niven Janet S. F.,
Berman L. D.
Publication year - 1968
Publication title -
international journal of cancer
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.475
H-Index - 234
eISSN - 1097-0215
pISSN - 0020-7136
DOI - 10.1002/ijc.2910030204
Subject(s) - mycoplasma , neoplastic transformation , biology , nucleic acid , cell , cell culture , stimulation , cellular metabolism , microbiology and biotechnology , metabolism , biochemistry , genetics , gene , carcinogenesis , neuroscience
Further investigations on the action of mycoplasmas on BHK21‐C13 cells are described. In addition to the already recorded alterations in cellular morphology, ability to form colonies in soft agar and changes in cellular nucleic acid metabolism, it has been found that the mycoplasma‐infected cells and the altered cells (in which no mycoplasmas could be detected) have an increased plating efficiency and an increased tumorigenicity. However, tumours produced by the altered (BHK21‐Mf) cells failed to show either mycoplasmas or foreign cellular antigens and their morphology is essentially similar to tumours produced by the control BHK21‐C13 cells. Analysis of the BHK21‐C13 cell—mycoplasma interaction has led to the conclusion that the phenomenon is not directly comparable to the usual type of neoplastic transformation produced by oncogenic viruses. However, implications of results such as these, obtained with the inherently neoplastic BHK21 cell line, must always be interpreted with caution.