Xenografts on nude mouse diaphragm of human DU145 prostate carcinoma cells: mesothelium removal by outgrowths and angiogenesis

ABSTRACT

Human prostate carcinoma DU145 cells, androgen-independent malignant cells, implanted in the athymic nu/nu male mouse, developed numerous tumors on peritoneal and retro-peritoneal organs whose growth aspects and vascular supply have yet to be investigated with fine structure techniques. A series of necropsies from moribund implanted mice diaphragms were examined with light, scanning, and transmission electron microscopy. DU145 xenografts installations, far away from the implanted site, were described as the smallest installation to large diaphragm outgrowths in moribund mice. Carcinomas did not show extracellular matrix and, reaching more than 0.15 mm in thickness, they revealed new structures in these outgrowths. Voids to be gland-like structures with mediocre secretion and, unexpectedly, intercellular spaces connected with fascicles of elongated DU145 cells that merged with a vascular supply originated from either the tumor cells and/or some perimysium vessels. In the largest carcinomas, most important vascular invasions coincidently accompanied the mouse lethality, similarly to human cancers. This androgen-independent model would be useful to study tumor outgrowth’s changes related to testing anticancer strategy, including anti-angiogenic therapies involving toxicity, simultaneously with those of other vital organs with combined biomolecular and fine structure techniques.

KEYWORDS:

• Prostate
• DU145 carcinoma
• mesothelium
• cytophagocytosis
• angiogenesis
• blood supply

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Correction Statement

This article has been republished with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.

Notes

1. Fig 15

Additional information

Funding

This research study was sponsored by IC-Med Tech (San Diego, CA, USA,), The Summa Health System Research Foundation (Akron, OH, USA) and St Georges’ University, Keith B Taylor Global Scholar’s Program, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK. Topic was part of the ‘1st International Symposium on Innovative Anticancer Drugs and Strategies,’ held in Newcastle upon Tyne, June 2010, sponsored by St Georges’ University School of Medicine and also part of both the plenary invited lecture given by JG in Stockholm, Sweden, ‘International Symposium on Anticancer Drugs,’ held in the Rival Hotel, 22-23 August 2013 and the international Meeting of ‘Clearance of Dying Cells and Debris in Healthy and Diseased Immune System,’ Aegean Conferences, Oct 5-10, 2014, Rhodes (Greece).