SUM-159PT cells: a novel estrogen independent human breast cancer model system

Breast cancer remains one of the most common malignant diseases in women in North America and Western Europe, yet therapies for the more aggressive estrogen independent tumors are limited and few model systems are available for the study of this type of breast cancer. In these studies, we characterized a novel estrogen independent breast cancer cell line, SUM-159PT. SUM-159PT cells are epithelial in origin, demonstrated by expression of cytokeratin 18. SUM-159PT cells are estrogen independent, demonstrated by lack of estrogen receptor (ER) protein and ER ligand binding studies. Furthermore, SUM-159PT cells injected subcutaneously or orthotopically are tumorigenic in ovariectomized athymic nude mice in the absence of estradiol supplementation. SUM-159PT cells are capable of invading through an 8 mu m Matrigel membrane and display a stellate morphology in Matrigel, indicative of a metastatic phenotype. Correlating with this phenotype, we have detected secondary tumors upon inoculation of SUM-159PT cells into the mammary fat pad. To further investigate the metastatic potential of the SUM-159PT cells, we examined the expression of two proteins, vimentin and E-cadherin, implicated in the transition of carcinoma cells to a metastatic phenotype. Western blot and immunohistochemical analysis demonstrated that both SUM-159PT cells and xenografts express vimentin. No expression of E-cadherin was detected in SUM-159PT cells. Our data indicate that despite estrogen independence, SUM-159PT cells are growth inhibited in vitro by compounds such as 1,25(OH)(2)D-3, transforming growth factor beta (TGF-beta), and the phorbol ester TPA. These studies indicate that SUM-159PT cells represent a good model system for the study of late stage estrogen independent, invasive breast cancer.