Transplantable Ductal Adenocarcinoma of the Syrian Hamster Pancreas

A well-differentiated ductal adenocarcinoma of the Syrian golden hamster induced by N-nitrosobis(2-oxopropyl)amine was transplantable to both nude mice and inbred Syrian hamsters. The tumor grew rapidly in the nude mouse (12-fold increase in size at 45 days) in contrast to its growth in hamster (3-fold increase in size at 45 days). A curious finding associated with the slow-growing tumor in the hamster was an intense infiltration of the neoplasm by polymorphonuclear leukocytes unattended by either necrosis or infection. The neoplasm produced mucin and rapidly and specifically bound¹²⁵l-labeled secretin, although the degree of nonspecific binding (40.5%) was higher than that of control hamster pancreas (23%). Unstimulated adenyl cyclase activity (pmol cyclic adenosine 3‘:5’-monophos-phate per mg protein) of the neoplasm was significantly higher [3.76 ± 0.55 (S.E.)] than that of unstimulated normal hamster pancreas (1.03 ± 0.44). Secretin did not significantly change the level of cyclic adenosine 3’:5’-monophos-phate (3.3 ± 0.56) from the unstimulated level in the neoplasm, in contrast to its effect on normal pancreas where the level was increased 3-fold (3.1 ± 0.75).