Journal Article

Bioware; SKOV3-luc-D3 cells

Peritoneal dissemination is a common feature of human ovarian carcinoma. While this can be mimicked in preclinical models by intraperitoneal injection of human ovarian tumor cells into immunocompromised mice, the resulting tumor burden is difficult to monitor and quantify. Intraperitoneal tumor growth is typically evaluated indirectly by measured changes in mouse abdominal girth and body weight or, directly, by macroscopic and histological examination at the endpoint of the study. In order to establish a model system that allows continuous and accurate assessment of ovarian cancer growth and spread over time we transfected SKOV-3 cells with the firefly luciferase gene. The resulting cell line, SKOV3-luc-D3, expresses stable levels of luciferase in vitro and emits a strong luminescent signal when exposed to luciferin. Xenograft tumors established with this cell line can be tracked and quantified non-invasively by bioluminescent imaging using a highly sensitive, cooled CCD camera (IVIS(R) Imaging System, Xenogen Corp). In addition to providing a direct measure of primary tumor burden and growth, the SKOV3-luc-D3 cell line also allows for real-time evaluation of tumor response to various therapeutic agents, as well as enhanced detection of distal metastases.