Cancer research is an area of scientific research that seeks to identify the causes of cancer, find new treatments and develop strategies to prevent the disease. One type of cancer that is particularly difficult to treat is lung cancer. Lung oncology is one of the leading causes of cancer-associated deaths worldwide, and researchers are constantly working to find new ways to diagnose, treat and prevent the disease.  Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in both men and women, and the five-year survival rate for the disease is below 20 percent. The A549 cell line is a widely used human lung adenocarcinoma cell line that was derived from a primary lung tumor. A549 cells are highly proliferative and have been used in a wide variety of research applications. 

What are the A549 cell line and its properties?

The A549 cell line was established in 1972 by D.J. Giard et al, through explant culture of adenocarcinoma lung tissue of a 58-year-old Caucasian male. A549 cells are hypotriploid alveolar basal epithelial cells. This adenocarcinoma cell line is categorized as a non-small-cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC), which tends to be less aggressive and spread less quickly than small-cell lung carcinoma (SCLC) but proves to be more common, accounting for 85-88% of all cases of lung cancer. The A549 cell line is widely used as a model of lung adenocarcinoma, as well as an in vitro model for type II pulmonary epithelial cells. 

The A549 cell line is hypotriploid with a modal chromosome number of 66, which occurs in 24% of cells. Modal numbers 64 and 67 are relatively common with higher ploidies occurring at an infrequent rate (0.4%). A549 cells are positive for keratin by immunoperoxidase staining. The cells are able to synthesize lecithin and contain a high percentage of unsaturated fatty acids, which are utilized by the cytidine-diphosphocholine pathway and are important for the maintenance of membrane phospholipids in cells.