The DOI matches its Crossref record; 114 of the 115 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
False leukemia–lymphoma cell lines: an update on over 500 cell lines
Abstract
Human leukemia-lymphoma (LL) cell lines represent an extremely important resource for research in a variety of fields and disciplines. As the cell lines are used as in vitro model systems in lieu of primary cell material, it is crucial that the cells in the culture flasks faithfully correspond to the purported objects of study. Obviously, proper authentication of cell line derivation and precise characterization are indispensable requirements to use as model systems. A number of studies has shown an unacceptable level of LL cell lines to be false. We present here the results of authenticating a comprehensively large sample (n = 550) of LL cell lines mainly by DNA fingerprinting and cytogenetic evaluation. Surprisingly, near-identical incidences (ca 15%) of false cell lines were observed among cell lines obtained directly from original investigators (59/395: 14.9%) and from secondary sources (23/155: 14.8%) implying that most cross-contamination is perpetrated by originators, presumably during establishment. By comparing our data with those published, we were further able to subclassify the false cell lines as (1) virtual: cross-contaminated with and unretrievably overgrown by other cell lines during initiation, never enjoying independent existence; (2) misidentified: cross-contaminated subsequent to establishment so that an original prototype may still exist; or (3) misclassified: unwittingly established from an unintended (often normal) cell type. Prolific classic leukemia c…
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“Although the issue of misidentified cell lines has long been known, its effect on the scientific literature has not been properly recognised, let alone properly treated [47, 48].”
From The ghosts of HeLa: How cell line misidentification contaminates the scientific literature (2017) · cites this paper as [47]
In the citing paper
“In 2003, Drexler, et al. fingerprinted 550 leukemia-lymphoma cells and calculated a 29.7%rate of CCCM [82].”
From The history, landscape, and outlook of human cell line authentication and security (2024) · cites this paper as [82]
Citations
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Jeffreys, A. J., Wilson, V., & Thein, S. L. (1985) · Nature · doi:10.1038/316076a0 · Cited by 2,172
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Beyond the Human Body: Models for Studying Neutrophil Biology
Hamdan, S., & Wachowska, M. (2026) · Immunology and Cell Biology · doi:10.1111/imcb.70150
Metadata
- Authors
- Drexler, H. G., Dirks, W. G., Matsuo, Y., & MacLeod, R. A. F.
- Affiliations
- Leibniz Institute DSMZ – German Collection of Microorganisms and Cell Cultures (DE)
- Hayashibara (Japan) (JP)
- Venue
- Leukemia
- Published
- 2003-02-01
- Volume
- 17
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 416-426
- ISSN
- 0887-6924 (ISSN-L)
- 1476-5551
- OpenAlex
- W2095077052
- Cited by
- 202
- References
- 115
- Citations by year
- 2026: 2 · 2025: 3 · 2024: 4 · 2023: 10 · 2022: 7 · 2021: 8 · 2020: 11 · 2019: 5 · 2018: 9 · 2017: 10 · 2016: 5 · 2015: 9 · 2014: 11 · 2013: 4 · 2012: 12
- FWCI
- 13.57
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Leukemia (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Hematology › Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia research
- Health Sciences › Health Professions › Medical Laboratory Technology › Clinical Laboratory Practices and Quality Control
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Hematology › Acute Myeloid Leukemia Research
- Keywords
- leukemia-lymphoma cell lines, cross-contamination, cell line authentication, DNA fingerprinting, cytogenetic evaluation, misidentification, misclassification, CCRF-CEM cells, HL-60 cells, Jurkat, K562 cells, U937 cells
- MeSH terms
- Humans, Karyotyping, Leukemia, Lymphoma, Research, Tumor Cells, Cultured, Reproducibility of Results, DNA Fingerprinting, Microsatellite Repeats, Cell Lineage
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