Figure 2.

The relationship between the genetic instability and the pf of human colon cancer cell lines (17). The pf is the quotient of the mn of a cancer line divided by 46, the chromosome number of normal human cells. Genetic instability was determined from the percentage of cells that gained or lost a given chromosome per 25 generations. The karyotypes of cells with near-diploid and tetraploid karyotypes, i.e., with pfs close to 1 and 2, respectively, are stable. The karyotypes of aneuploid cells are unstable, in proportion to their degree of aneuploidy, or to the deviation of their ploidy factors from 1 and 2.