Establishment and characterization of the rhabdomyosarcoma cell line designated NUTOS derived from the human tongue sarcoma: Special reference to the susceptibility of anti-cancer drugs

Primary alveolar type of rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS) tumor tissue was collected from the tongue of a 17-year-old Japanese woman and used to successfully establish a rhabdomyosarcoma cell line, which has been designated NUTOS. The chromosomal distribution revealed that the NUTOS cell line was hyper-tetraploid with chromosomal translocation. The cells were grown in Dulbecco’s modified eagle medium/F12 supplemented with 15% fetal bovine serum, 0.1% non-essential amino acids solution (NEAA), 50 μg of streptomycin, 50 U/mL of penicillin and 0.25 μg /mL of Fungizone. The NUTOS shapes included small spindles, large spindles and long, thick multinucleated cells. All three cell types were immunostained with anti-desmin antibody, which is a marker protein for middle sized myofilaments. Furthermore, immunocytochemical staining revealed that the cells were positively immunostained with anti-MyoD, myogenin, α-sarcomeric actin, myosin and troponin T. Mitotic figures were only observed in the small spindle cells. These cells were coadunated with each other at the lateral portion of the apex of the cells. Subsequently, these cells grew into large multinucleated cells. Autonomic contractions (approximately 20 times/min) were observed in both the large spindle cells and the large multinucleated cells. NUTOS cells incorporated serotonin from the serum in the growth medium. Histopathological observations of the NUTOS cell grafts in the subcutis of nude mice exhibited characteristics similar to those seen for the primary rhabdomyosarcoma of the tongue. Susceptibility tests for the anti-cancer drugs revealed that NUTOS cells were susceptive to cisplatin, paclitaxel, and docetaxel, but not to adriacin.