Figure 3
From: Distinct routes to metastasis: plasticity-dependent and plasticity-independent pathways
Lineage tracing suggests that MET is rare during tumorigenesis and metastasis. (a) Tumors from AT3 cells harboring RG and either pcDNA6, constitutively active Cre, or E-cadCreIIIcI2 express DsRed, EGFP and a mixture of both fluorescence proteins (white arrows), respectively. Dotted white lines highlight the outer edges of the tumors. Cultured cells from each tumor type are indicated in the right set of panels. A mixture of DsRed-positive and EGFP-positive cells were cultured from tumors harboring the MET reporter, E-cadCreIIIcI2. (b) A representative, whole mount image of the lungs, with visible metastases indicated with black arrows. AT3 metastases maintained DsRed expression, with only rare MET-like events, suggesting an MET-independent route to metastasis. (c) The percent MET in cultured cells (+ symbol), primary tumors (○ symbol) and lung metastases (□ symbol) was quantified by flow cytometry.
