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Cell Biology
ATCC® Number: HTB-129™    Price: $264.00
Designations: MDA-MB-435S
Biosafety Level: 1
Shipped: frozen
Medium & Serum: See Propagation
Growth Properties: adherent
Organism: Homo sapiens (human)
Morphology: spindle shaped
Source: Organ: previously described as: mammary gland; breast
Disease: previously described as ductal carcinoma
Derived from metastatic site: pleural effusion
Cellular Products: tubulin; actin
Permits/Forms: In addition to the MTA mentioned above, other ATCC and/or regulatory permits may be required for the transfer of this ATCC material. Anyone purchasing ATCC material is ultimately responsible for obtaining the permits. Please click here for information regarding the specific requirements for shipment to your location.
Isolation: Isolation date: 1976
Tumorigenic: No
DNA Profile (STR): Amelogenin: X
CSF1PO: 11
D13S317: 12
D16S539: 13
D5S818: 12
D7S820: 8,10
THO1: 6,7
TPOX: 8,11
vWA: 16,18
Cytogenetic Analysis: modal number = 56; range = 55 to 62
The cell line is aneuploid human female (XX), with most chromosome counts in the 55 to 60 range. Normal chromosomes N6, N11, and N22 were absent, while chromosomes N7, N13, N18 and N21 were single. Most of the remainder of normal chromosomes were usually paired, but chromosome N2 was triple. Nineteen marker chromosomes were identified, with most of them formed from structural alterations of the missing copies of the normal chromosomes. Six of these markers involve regions of chromosome N7, while three are recognized as derivatives of chromosome N6. Regions of a third copy of the normal and paired chromosomes N3, N15, N17, N20 are noted in markers M1, M2, M15, and M5, respectively.
Isoenzymes: AK-1, 1
ES-D, 1
G6PD, B
GLO-I, 2
PGM1, 2
PGM3, 1
Age: 31 years adult
Gender: female
Ethnicity: Caucasian
Comments: This cell line was originally described as a spindle shaped variant of the parental MDA-MB-435 strain isolated in 1976 by R. Cailleau, et al. from the pleural effusion of a 31 year old female with metastatic, ductal adenocarcinoma of the breast. However, recent studies have generated questions about the origin of the parent cell line, MDA-MB-435, and by extension HTB-129. Gene expression analysis of the cells produced microarrays in which MDA-MB-435 clustered with cell lines of melanoma origin instead of breast [PubMed ID: 10700174, PubMed ID: 15150101, PubMed ID: 15679052]. Additional studies have since corroborated a melanocyte origin of MDA-MB-435, to which ATCChas responded by pursuing its own investigation into the identity of this cell line. The cell line to which MDA-MB-435 is reported to have been cross-contaminated with is the M14 melanoma line [PubMed ID: 12354931 and PubMed ID: 17004106].
Derivatives of HTB-129 with identities in question:
M4A4, ATCC® CRL-2914
M4A4 GFP, ATCC® CRL-2915
M4A4 LM3-2 GFP, ATCC® CRL-2916
M4A4 LM3-4 CL 16 GFP, ATCC® CRL-2917
NM2C5, ATCC® CRL-2918
NM2C5 GFP, ATCC® CRL-2919
Propagation: ATCC complete growth medium: The base medium for this cell line is ATCC-formulated Leibovitz's L-15 Medium, Catalog No. 30-2008. To make the complete growth medium, add the following components to the base medium:
  • 0.01mg/ml bovine insulin
  • 0.01mg/ml glutathione
  • fetal bovine serum to a final concentration of 10%

Atmosphere: air, 100%
Temperature: 37.0°C
Subculturing: Protocol: Remove medium, add fresh 0.25%trypsin - 0.53 mM EDTA, rinse and remove. Place flask at room temperature (or incubated at 37C) for approximately 10 minutes or until the cells detach. Add fresh medium, aspirate and dispense into new flasks.
Subcultivation Ratio: A subcultivation ratio of 1:3 to 1:6 is recommended
Medium Renewal: 2 to 3 times per week
Preservation: Freeze medium: Culture medium, 95%; DMSO, 5%
Storage temperature: liquid nitrogen vapor phase
Related Products: Recommended medium (without the additional supplements or serum described under ATCC Medium):ATCC 30-2008
recommended serum:ATCC 30-2020
purified DNA:ATCC HTB-129D
purified RNA:ATCC HTB-129R
References: 1206: Brinkley BR, et al. Variations in cell form and cytoskeleton in human breast carcinoma cells in vitro. Cancer Res. 40: 3118-3129, 1980. PubMed: 7000337
22429: Siciliano MJ, et al. Mutually exclusive genetic signatures of human breast tumor cell lines with a common chromosomal marker. Cancer Res. 39: 919-922, 1979. PubMed: 427779
22656: Cailleau R, et al. Long-term human breast carcinoma cell lines of metastatic origin: preliminary characterization. In Vitro 14: 911-915, 1978. PubMed: 730202
32341: Sheng S, et al. Maspin acts at the cell membrane to inhibit invasion and motility of mammary and prostatic cancer cells. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 93: 11669-11674, 1996. PubMed: 8876194
32925: Zhu X, et al. Cell cycle-dependent modulation of telomerase activity in tumor cells. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 93: 6091-6095, 1996. PubMed: 8650224
49803: Ross DT, et al. Systematic variation in gene expression patterns in human cancer cell lines. Nature Genetics 24: 227-235, 2000. PubMed: 10700174
89918: Ellison G, et al. Further evidence to support the melanocytic origin of MDA-MB-435. Mol. Pathol. 55: 294-299, 2002. PubMed: 12354931
90826: Sellappan s, et al. Lineage infidelity of MDA-MB-435 cells: expression of melanocyte proteins in a breast cancer cell line. Cancer Res. 64: 3479-3485, 2004. PubMed: 15150101
90828: Rae JM, et al. Common origins of MDA-MB-435 cells from various sources with those shown to have melanoma properties. Clin. Exp. Metastasis 21: 543-552, 2004. PubMed: 15679052
16173093: Rae JM, et al., MDA-MB-435 cells are derived from M14 Melanoma cells - a loss for breast cancer, but a boon for melanoma research. Breast Cancer Res. Treat. 104:13-19, 2007. PubMed: 17004106.
16173545: Chambers AF. MDA-MB-435 and M14 cell lines: identical but not M14 melanoma? Cancer Res. 69(13): 5292-5293, 2009. PubMed: 19549886.
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