Baseline levels of chromosome instability in the human lymphoblastoid cell TK6.

Induced genomic instability in the human B lymphoblastoid cell line TK6 manifests itself as increases in end-to-end chromosome fusions and non-reciprocal chromosome translocations. It is not associated with elevated frequencies of specific locus mutations or other cytogenetic alterations. Previous studies on a limited number of cells and end-points suggested that induced instability in TK6 mirrors spontaneous instability in terms of the types of alterations observed. In the present study we expanded on our previous analysis to include more cells and more end-points in order to derive a more precise measure of spontaneous instability in TK6 cells. The frequency of normal growth rate thymidine kinase mutants (TK(-/-)), measured in 44 independently isolated clones, was 2.73 +/- 0.78 x 10(-6)/cell, while that for slow growth mutants was 2.39 +/- 0.52 x 10(-6)/cell. These are similar to the frequencies observed for HPRT mutants in primary human cells. There was wide variation in chromatid break frequencies, but the average break frequency, at 0.04+/-0.01 breaks/cell, was only slightly higher than that reported for primary human cells. In contrast, the dicentric frequency of 0.006/cell was more than 10-fold higher for TK6 cells than that reported for normal primary human cells. Furthermore, the dicentrics in TK6 cells are unusual in that they are the result of end-to-end chromosome fusions. TK6 cells also show much higher levels of non-reciprocal chromosome translocations than are usually observed in primary human cells. The results suggest an inherent instability in TK6 cells that differs from what is observed in primary cells in that it affects the frequency of end-to-end chromosome fusions and non-reciprocal chromosome translocations, but not TK gene mutations or other cytogenetic alterations.

The TP53 dependence of radiation-induced chromosome instability in human lymphoblastoid cells.

The dose and TP53 dependence for the induction of chromosome instability were examined in cells of three human lymphoblastoid cell lines derived from WIL2 cells: TK6, a TP53-normal cell line, NH32, a TP53-knockout created from TK6, and WTK1, a WIL2-derived cell line that spontaneously developed a TP53 mutation. Cells of each cell line were exposed to (137)Cs gamma rays, and then surviving clones were isolated and expanded in culture for approximately 35 generations before the frequency and characteristics of the instability were analyzed. The presence of dicentric chromosomes, formed by end-to-end fusions, served as a marker of chromosomal instability. Unexposed TK6 cells had low levels of chromosomal instability (0.002 +/- 0.001 dicentrics/cell). Exposure of TK6 cells to doses as low as 5 cGy gamma rays increased chromosome instability levels nearly 10-fold to 0.019 +/- 0.008 dicentrics/cell. There was no further increase in instability levels beyond 5 cGy. In contrast to TK6 cells, unexposed cultures of WTK1 and NH32 cells had much higher levels of chromosome instability of 0.034 +/- 0.007 and 0.041 +/- 0.009, respectively, but showed little if any effect of radiation on levels of chromosome instability. The results suggest that radiation exposure alters the normal TP53-dependent cell cycle checkpoint controls that recognize alterations in telomere structure and activate apoptosis.

Induction of genomic instability in TK6 human lymphoblasts exposed to 137Cs gamma radiation: comparison to the induction by exposure to accelerated 56Fe particles.

The induction of genomic instability in TK6 human lymphoblasts by exposure to (137)Cs gamma radiation was investigated by measuring the frequency and characteristics of unstable clones isolated approximately 36 generations after exposure. Clones surviving irradiation and control clones were analyzed for 17 characteristics including chromosomal aberrations, growth defects, alterations in response to a second irradiation, and mutant frequencies at the thymidine kinase and Na(+)/K(+) ATPase loci. Putative unstable clones were defined as those that exhibited a significant alteration in one or more characteristics compared to the controls. The frequency and characteristics of the unstable clones were compared in clones exposed to (137)Cs gamma rays or (56)Fe particles. The majority of the unstable clones isolated after exposure to either gamma rays or (56)Fe particles exhibited chromosomal instability. Alterations in growth characteristics, radiation response and mutant frequencies occurred much less often than cytogenetic alterations in these unstable clones. The frequency and complexity of the unstable clones were greater after exposure to (56)Fe particles than to gamma rays. Unstable clones that survived 36 generations after exposure to gamma rays exhibited increases in the incidence of dicentric chromosomes but not of chromatid breaks, whereas unstable clones that survived 36 generations after exposure to (56)Fe particles exhibited increases in both chromatid and chromosome aberrations.

Characteristics of genomic instability in clones of TK6 human lymphoblasts surviving exposure to 56Fe ions.

Genomic instability in the human lymphoblast cell line TK6 was studied in clones surviving 36 generations after exposure to accelerated 56Fe ions. Clones were assayed for 20 characteristics, including chromosome aberrations, plating efficiency, apoptosis, cell cycle distribution, response to a second irradiation, and mutant frequency at two loci. The primary effect of the 56Fe-ion exposure on the surviving clones was a significant increase in the frequency of unstable chromosome aberrations compared to the very low spontaneous frequency, along with an increase in the phenotypic complexity of the unstable clones. The radiation-induced increase in the frequency of unstable chromosome aberrations was much greater than that observed previously in clones of the related cell line, WTK1, which in comparison to the TK6 cell line expresses an increased radiation resistance, a mutant TP53 protein, and an increased frequency of spontaneous unstable chromosome aberrations. The characteristics of the unstable clones of the two cell lines also differed. Most of the TK6 clones surviving exposure to 56Fe ions showed unstable cytogenetic abnormalities, while the phenotype of the WTK1 clones was more diverse. The results underscore the importance of genotype in the characteristics of instability after radiation exposure.