The mRNA expression of neuron- and glia-related genes was analyzed by reverse transcription-PCR in 12 tumor cell lines, including five synovial sarcoma (SS) cell lines (YaFuSS, HS-SY-II, SYO-1, Fuji, 1273/99). The SS cell lines expressed a number of neuron-related genes such as CRABP1, which was not detected in other cell lines. The SS cell lines partially retained the original expression profile of the primary SS tumors shown in Figure 1.