Genentech authenticated cell lines. Homo sapiens

Cultured cell lines are an essential tool for scientific research, however contamination of stocks and confusion of cell line origin frequently results in erroneous conclusions. Maintaining the integrity of cell line stocks represents a significant challenge since publication of data using misidentified, derivative or synonymous cell lines may result in misleading or erroneous conclusions. The exponential growth of data generated from large-scale, high content analysis of cell lines requires standardized nomenclature and unambiguous identification of cell lines to facilitate data integration and analysis. Here we present a framework for accurate cell line annotation linked to STR and SNP profiles for human cell lines used in oncology research, including unambiguous annotations using controlled vocabularies for 3,587 cell lines, STR profiles for 2,787 cell lines and SNP profiles for 1,020 cell lines. We identify 1,213 cell lines with synonymous partners based on STR profiles and published information, with details of cell lines erroneously labeled as synonymous. We outline measures designed to detect or avoid the most common forms of cross-contamination. This resource is designed to enable the scientific community to accurately identify cell lines, annotate associated data with a controlled vocabulary, to facilitate data sharing, and provide a framework which can be expanded to other cell line collections.