Human-mouse somatic cell hybrids with single human chromosome (group E): link with thymidine kinase activity.

Mouse somatic cells lacking thymidine kinase were mixed in culture with human diploid cells lacking hypoxanthine guanine phosphoribosyl transferase, and hybrid cells were isolated and maintained in a selective medium containing hypoxanthine, aminopterin, and thymidine. The hybrid cells at the time of isolation had karyotypes consisting predominantly of mouse chromosomes but with one human chromosome, a submetacentric member of group E, apparently giving thymidine kinase to the hybrid cell. However, after long-term propagation in the selective medium this chromosome has been lost, although cells continue to show thymidine kinase activity as demonstrated by the incorporation of (3)H-thy-midine into DNA in the hybrid cell. The hybrid cells have only mouse electro-phoretic variants for glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase, lactate dehydrogenase, and malate dehydrogenase, suggesting that the human genetic loci for these enzymes are not represented in the hybrid genome and may be unlinked to that for thymidine kinase.