Molecular cytogenetic characterization of the human cerebral microvessel endothelial cell line hCMEC/D3.
The immortalized human cerebral microvessel endothelial cell line hCMEC/D3 has been repeatedly used as a model of human blood-brain barrier (BBB). hCMEC/D3 cells between passage 25 and 35 are most often applied in research, remained phenotypically nontransformed, and cells maintained many characteristics of human brain endothelial cells. Also hCMEC/D3 was thought to have conserved a normal diploid karyotype over all these passages. Here we characterized the cell line using high-resolution multicolor fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) approaches and revealed a complex karyotype in the 30th passage. Clonal cryptic unbalanced structural rearrangements and numerical aberrations were discovered and described as follows: 45 approximately 48,XX, -X,del(5)(q11)[2],del(9)(q11)[3],+9[3],del(11)(q13 approximately 14)[2], der(14)t(14;21)(q32.33;q22.3)[28],der(15)t(9;15)(p11;p11)[13], dup(15)(p11q11)[5],der(21)t(17;21)(p12;q22)[9],-22[6][cp28]. In summary, a complex karyotype with clonal unbalanced chromosomal rearrangements is present in hCMEC/D3. Thus, we solicit to include molecular cytogenetics in the testing of all cell lines prior to application of their use in complex studies.
Mkrtchyan
H
H
Jena University Hospital, Institute of Human Genetics and Anthropology, Jena, Germany.
Scheler
S
S
Klein
I
I
Fahr
A
A
Couraud
P O
PO
Romero
I A
IA
Weksler
B
B
Liehr
T
T
D001921:Brain / Q000098:blood supply* / Q000166:cytology*; D002460:Cell Line; D002869:Chromosome Aberrations; D042783:Endothelial Cells / Q000166:cytology*; D006801:Humans; D007621:Karyotyping; D055806:Microvessels / Q000166:cytology*