1. Cell lines
2. Guide screw intracranial bolting
This procedure can be carried out several days prior to the injection of cells. All procedures described here have been carried out under strict sterile conditions.
3. Intracranial cellular engraftment
4. Therapeutic challenge
5. Evaluation of therapeutic efficiency
6. Representative results:
Control animals began to show signs of neurological disturbance and weight loss 23 days after the initial inoculation of cells. This was significantly delayed in the AMG102 treated group to 35 days. Indeed by day 35, 77% (n = 7/9) of the control group had been euthanized. The Kaplan-Meier survival curve clearly demonstrates the significant increase in survival in response to AMG102 treatment (Figure 3). By day 70, 88% of control mice had been euthanized (n = 8/9) compared to 37% (n = 3/8) of AMG102 treated group. Histological analysis of the brains confirmed that all 9 animals in the control group developed tumors compared to only 3 of the 8 AMG102 treated mice (Figure 4).
Figure 1: Image (A) shows intracranial guide screw positioned in an area located directly above the caudate nucleus. The cuffed hamilton syringe (pre-loaded with cells) is then placed inside the guide screw so that 2 mm of needle extends beyond the guide and the cells are injected 3.5 mm inside the caudate nucleus. The syringe is later removed and replaced by a stylet (B). The automatic infusion device (C) can inject up to 10 animals at a time. Shown here are five simultaneous injections (D).
Figure 2: Schematic of study protocol. Cells were injected on day 0 with treatment commencing on day 4. Control animals received an injection of PBS (100 μl) IP while the treatment group received an injection of AMG102 (100 μg/100 μl) IP. These injections were given every second day for 10 days. A total of 6 injections were given. Animals were then monitored for 70 days for signs of neurological and physical disturbances.
Figure 3: Kaplan-Meier survival curve comparing control and AMG102 treated mice. Significant survival was obtained following treatment with AMG102 (p=0.005).
Figure 4: Microphotographs of coronal brain sections demonstrating tumor development in the control animals (A) and no brain tumor development in the AMG102 treated animals (B). Scale bar is 1 mm.
Name of the reagent | Company | Catalogue number | Comments (optional) |
---|---|---|---|
DMEM/F12 | Invitrogen | 12634010 | |
FCS | Bovogen | SFBS | |
Trypsin | Invitrogen | 15050065 | |
EDTA | Sigma | E6758 | |
Balb/c nu/nu mice | ARC Perth | ||
Screw Holder | Plastics One | SD-1 | |
Drill Holder | Plastics One | DH-1 | |
Drill Bit | Plastics One | D#60 | |
Screw guide (metal) | Plastics One | C212SG | |
Screw Dummy (stylus) | Plastics One | C212SD | |
Hamilton Syringe (10 μl 26g cemented needle) | Grace Division Discovery Science | 80075 | |
PHD 22/2000 infusion pump | Harvard Apparatus | 70-2003 | Optional |
Vetbond | 3M | 1469SB | |
Thermo pad | Harvard Apparatus | 340390 |
The grafting of human tumor cells into the brain of immunosuppressed mice is an established method for the study of brain cancers including glioblastoma (glioma) and medulloblastoma. The widely used stereotactic approach only allows for the injection of a single animal at a time, is labor intensive and requires highly specialized equipment. The guide screw method, initially developed by Lal et al.,1 was developed to eliminate cumbersome stereotactic procedures. We now describe a modified guide screw approach that is rapid and exceptionally safe; both of which are critical ethical considerations. Notably, our procedure now incorporates an infusion pump that allows up to 10 animals to be simultaneously injected with tumor cells.
To demonstrate the utility of this procedure, we established human U87MG glioma cells as intracranial xenografts in mice, which were then treated with AMG102; a fully human antibody directed to HGF/scatter factor currently undergoing clinical evaluation2-5. Systemic injection of AMG102 significantly prolonged the survival of all mice with intracranial U87MG xenografts and resulted in a number of complete cures.
This study demonstrates that the guide screw method is an inexpensive, highly reproducible approach for establishing intracranial xenografts. Furthermore, it provides a relevant physiological model for validating novel therapeutic strategies for the treatment of brain cancers.
The grafting of human tumor cells into the brain of immunosuppressed mice is an established method for the study of brain cancers including glioblastoma (glioma) and medulloblastoma. The widely used stereotactic approach only allows for the injection of a single animal at a time, is labor intensive and requires highly specialized equipment. The guide screw method, initially developed by Lal et al.,1 was developed to eliminate cumbersome stereotactic procedures. We now describe a modified guide screw approach that is rapid and exceptionally safe; both of which are critical ethical considerations. Notably, our procedure now incorporates an infusion pump that allows up to 10 animals to be simultaneously injected with tumor cells.
To demonstrate the utility of this procedure, we established human U87MG glioma cells as intracranial xenografts in mice, which were then treated with AMG102; a fully human antibody directed to HGF/scatter factor currently undergoing clinical evaluation2-5. Systemic injection of AMG102 significantly prolonged the survival of all mice with intracranial U87MG xenografts and resulted in a number of complete cures.
This study demonstrates that the guide screw method is an inexpensive, highly reproducible approach for establishing intracranial xenografts. Furthermore, it provides a relevant physiological model for validating novel therapeutic strategies for the treatment of brain cancers.
The grafting of human tumor cells into the brain of immunosuppressed mice is an established method for the study of brain cancers including glioblastoma (glioma) and medulloblastoma. The widely used stereotactic approach only allows for the injection of a single animal at a time, is labor intensive and requires highly specialized equipment. The guide screw method, initially developed by Lal et al.,1 was developed to eliminate cumbersome stereotactic procedures. We now describe a modified guide screw approach that is rapid and exceptionally safe; both of which are critical ethical considerations. Notably, our procedure now incorporates an infusion pump that allows up to 10 animals to be simultaneously injected with tumor cells.
To demonstrate the utility of this procedure, we established human U87MG glioma cells as intracranial xenografts in mice, which were then treated with AMG102; a fully human antibody directed to HGF/scatter factor currently undergoing clinical evaluation2-5. Systemic injection of AMG102 significantly prolonged the survival of all mice with intracranial U87MG xenografts and resulted in a number of complete cures.
This study demonstrates that the guide screw method is an inexpensive, highly reproducible approach for establishing intracranial xenografts. Furthermore, it provides a relevant physiological model for validating novel therapeutic strategies for the treatment of brain cancers.