Correlation between plasma DNA and tumor status in an animal model

PLoS One. 2014 Dec 2;9(12):e111881. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0111881. eCollection 2014.

Abstract

Overcoming metastasis is one of the most important issues with lung cancer. Since metastasis arises through complex steps, a suitable animal model is indispensable for investigation of metastasis. To establish an animal model reflecting human metastatic lung cancers, we used NOD/SCID/Jak3null (NOJ) mice, which exhibit deficiencies in NK cell activity, macrophage and dendritic cell function, and complement activation, as well as T and B cell deficiencies. After screening twenty human lung cancer cell lines through expression patterns of E-cadherin and vimentin according to epithelial mesenchymal transition features, an H1975 cell line carrying EGFR mutations, L858R and T790M, was selected for investigation. Inoculation of the cells into the dorsal flanks caused systemic metastases after one month in lymph nodes, liver, lung, and peritoneum, suggesting that metastases occurred both lymphogenically and hematogenously. We confirmed the existence of H1975 cells in metastatic lesions by detection of T790M and L858R using the mutation-biased PCR and quenching probe (MBP-QP) system previously established in our laboratory. In addition, tumor-derived plasma DNA could be detected using the MBP-QP method. The amount of tumor-derived DNA was associated with tumor volume, whereas an unrelated large amount of tumor-derived DNA was circulating in the presence of metastasis. We present a novel animal model with systemic metastasis with human lung cancer cells. The amount of tumor derived DNA would be related with tumor volume and tumor progression such as metastasis.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Body Weight
  • Carcinoma, Non-Small-Cell Lung / pathology
  • Cell Line, Tumor
  • DNA Mutational Analysis
  • DNA, Neoplasm / blood*
  • Disease Models, Animal
  • ErbB Receptors / genetics
  • Liver / pathology
  • Lung / pathology
  • Lung Neoplasms / metabolism
  • Lung Neoplasms / pathology
  • Lymph Nodes / pathology
  • Mice
  • Mice, Inbred NOD
  • Mice, SCID
  • Mutation
  • Neoplasm Metastasis
  • Neoplasm Transplantation
  • Neoplasms / blood*

Substances

  • DNA, Neoplasm
  • ErbB Receptors

Grants and funding

This work was supported in part by an AstraZeneca Research & Development Grant in 2013, and the Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research-KAKENHI 26430144 (N.S-A.). The costs of publication of this article were defrayed in part by the payment of page charges. This article must therefore be hereby marked advertisement in accordance with 18 U.S.C. Section 1734 solely to indicate this fact. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.