Characterization of cells obtained by mechanical and enzymatic means from human melanoma, sarcoma, and lung tumors.

Characterization of cells comprising solid tumors will facilitate the rational design of cancer chemotherapy for individual patients. We have prepared cell suspensions from human melanoma, sarcoma, and lung tumors by thinly slicing the tissue with a microtome and scalpels (mechanical release), followed by treatment with a mixture of collagenase II and DNase I (enzymatic release). This method of disaggregation resulted in two cell suspensions for each tumor specimen, and we characterized these suspensions by assessing their dye exclusion capability, ribonucleoside triphosphate pools, cytological profile and clonogenicity in soft agar. The enzymatic method thus yields cells in addition to those obtainable by a mild mechanical procedure, and these cells are similar in cytological profile and clonogenicity in soft agar to those released mechanically. Furthermore, the enzymatically released population is superior to that released mechanically for purposes requiring large numbers of dye-excluding cells having intact ribonucleotide pools.