Characterization of a novel canine T-cell line established from a spontaneously occurring aggressive T-cell lymphoma with large granular cell morphology

Dogs with lymphoma are established as good model for human non-Hodgkin lymphoma studies. Canine cell lines derived from lymphomas may be valuable tools for testing new therapeutic drugs. In this context, we established a canine T-cell line, PER-VAS, from a primary aggressive T-cell lymphoma with large granular morphology. Flow cytometric analysis revealed a stable immunophenotype: PER-VAS cells were positively labelled for CD5, CD45, MHC II and TLR3, and were negative for CD3, CD4 and CD8 expression. Although unstable along the culture process, IL-17 and MMP12 proteins were detectable as late as at passages 280 and 325i.e. respectively 24 and 29 months post isolation. At passage 325, PER-VAS cells maintained the expression of IL-17, CD3, CD56, IFN gamma and TNF alpha mRNAs as shown by RT-PCR analysis. Stable rearrangement of the TCRy gene has been evidenced by PCR. PER-VAS cells have a high proliferation index with a doubling time of 16.5 h and were tumorigenic in Nude mice. Compared to the canine cell lines already reported, PER-VAS cells display an original expression pattern, close to NKT cells, which makes them valuable tools for in vitro comparative research on lymphomas. (C) 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier GmbH.