Science & Technology Review. 2007, 25(0701): 24-27.
The effects of space environment on the proliferation ability and immunogenicity of melanoma B16 cells are studied in this paper. Four B16 cells, which were on board in the 20th recoverable satellite, are selected. Their biological characteristics are found changed significantly in experiments in vitro. B16 cells selected were inoculated into C57BL/6 mice; each kind of space cells was injected into 20 mice, which were divided into two groups randomly, with ten mice in each group inoculated with experimental cells and one group were inoculated in the abdominal cavities to observe the survival time of tumor mice, and the other group were inoculated under the chest skins to record the time named as the forming-tumor time when the diameters of tumors exceeded 3 mm. The tumor mice were killed 2 weeks after the space cells were inoculated. Then, tumors were ablated and serum was separated. The tumors were weighted to measure the abilities of space mutant B16 cells in forming tumors; tumor slices were stained to observe the changes of shape of space mutant B16 cells; the concentration of InterLeukin-2 (IL-2) of the serum of tumor mice was determinrd to observe the immunogenicity of space cells with the method of radioimmunoassay (RIA). Comparedwith wild melanoma B16 cells, the survival time of the tumor mice with inoculated 11# cells was found to be shortened significantly, while that with 4#, 9#, 15# and Gro cells saw no apparent changes; the time in forming tumors for tumor mice inoculated with 11# and Gro cells was prolonged significantly, while that with 4#, 9# and 15# cells saw no apparent changes; the weight of carcinomas of tumor mice inoculated with 11# cell decreased significantly, that with 15# cells increased, while that with 4#, 9# and Gro cell saw no apparent changes. Tumor slices stained by the method of HE showed that the necrotic area of carcinomas of 11# space cells was reduced and there were lymphocytes within the tumor tissues in tumor mice inoculated with 11# and 15# space mutant cells. RIA tests showed that the IL-2 concentration in the serum of tumor mice inoculated with 9#, 11#, 15# and Gro cells increased, especially that with 11# cells; while that with 4# cells saw no changes. Space environment may change the proliferation ability and immunogenicity of melanoma B16 cells.
