The U-118 MG cell line was initiated from the tissue of a malignant glioma excised from a 50-year-old Caucasian male. The line exhibits mixed morphology, with both glioblastoma and astrocytoma cells being present in U-118 MG cultures.

Laboratory tests have demonstrated that U-118 MG cells are tumorigenic in murine species when they are inoculated with the cells subcutaneously. In the late 1980s, mycoplasma contamination of major stocks of the line was detected and subsequently eliminated by treatment with BM-cycline. Another cell line, dubbed U-138 MG, is nearly identical to the U-118 MG line though the cells were reportedly developed from distinct sources. DNA analysis reveals that the lines, which share at least six derivative marker chromosomes, have identical VNTR (variable number of tandem repeats) patterns and similar STR (short tandem repeat) patterns.

Gliomas are brain tumors that develop from glial cells, which are the cells that surround and support neurons. As the most commonly diagnosed form of primary brain tumor, gliomas are the subject of a significant amount of scientific research. The brain tumors are very aggressive and claim the lives of thousands of Americans each year, but studies with the U-118 MG line and other established tumor cell lines are currently being carried out with the goal of achieving a better understanding of the molecular biology of cancers and of finding better treatments. Some of the latest areas of research in the brain tumor field include developing feasible methods of disrupting the nourishment of gliomas by blood vessels and identifying molecules unique to the tumors that could lead to targeted treatments.

The U-118 MG glioma cells presented in the digital image above were resident in a culture that was immunofluorescently labeled with anti-tubulin mouse monoclonal primary antibodies followed by goat anti-mouse Fab fragments conjugated to Texas Red. In addition, the specimen was stained with Alexa Fluor 488 conjugated to phalloidin and Hoechst 33342, targeting the cytoskeletal filamentous actin network and DNA in the cell nucleus, respectively. Images were recorded in grayscale with a 12-bit digital camera coupled to either a Nikon E-600 or Eclipse 80i microscope equipped with bandpass emission fluorescence filter optical blocks. During the processing stage, individual image channels were pseudocolored with RGB values corresponding to each of the fluorophore emission spectral profiles.