Characterization and molecular profiling of canine cancer cell lines

Abstract

The advent of personalized medicine promises to revolutionize the treatment of cancer but first requires the extensive characterization of a wide range of tumors in order to build an effective framework. Canine cancer cell lines share many similarities to human cancer cell lines and are therefore a valuable resource for expanding the foundation of knowledge that personalized medicine builds off. Utilizing PCR and Sanger sequencing, the presence of a frameshift mutation in exon 20 of the STAT2 gene was confirmed to be conserved across three canine thyroid carcinoma cell lines while mutations in MUC4 and RB1 were not confirmed. Growth inhibition assays of numerous cell lines with Trametinib confirmed the utility of the MPAS in predicting MAPK-inhibitor sensitivity and identification of outlier cell lines. Growth inhibition assays with TK216 lend support for the hypothesis that TK216 works through a more generalized cytotoxic mechanism than first believed, and the reliability of Alamar Blue vs. Incucyte protocols for growth inhibition assays was assessed with Incucyte proving more reliable. Overall, these findings expand the current understanding of the molecular nature of cancer and provide further data for personalized medicine to incorporate to improve future cancer outcomes in both dogs and humans.