Establishment and characterization of a cholangiocarcinoma cell line (RMCCA-1) from a Thai patient

Aim: To establish and characterize a new cell line derived from peripheral cholangiocarcinoma of a Thai patient. Methods: The peripheral cholangiocarcinoma specimen surgically obtained from the patient was aseptically processed by washing and mincing before culturing in Ham's F12 medium containing 10% fetal bovine serum. After 3 mo, when the cell line has become homogeneous and stabilized, several features were investigated, including growth characteristics, immunofluorescence staining for cytokeratins, expression of tumor markers, chromosomal analysis by G-banding and multicolour fluorescence in situ hybridization (mFISH), in vitro migration and invasion characteristics. Results: The RMCCA-1 cell line has been established. These cells proliferated as a monolayer with a population doubling time of 48 h. Immunofluorescence staining showed positive staining for human cytokeratin 7 and 19 verifying the biliary epithelial origin. RMCCA-1 secreted carbohydrate antigen 19-9 (CA19-9), but insignificant levels of carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) and α-fetoprotein (AFP). Chromosome analysis identified aneuploidy karyotypes with a modal chromosome number of 59. RMCCA-1 exhibited a low level of in vitro invasiveness, but a high degree of motility. The cell line exhibited a significant number of chromosomal aberrations as shown by mFISH and G-banding methods. Conclusion: A new cell line derived from peripheral cholangiocarcinoma of a Thai patient has been established. This cell line shows a low level of in vitro invasiveness, but a high degree of motility. It will serve as a valuable tool for further studies on tumor biology, molecular pathogenesis, metastatic mechanism and response to therapeutic drugs of cholangiocarcinoma.