Germline/embryonic-specific genes have been found to be activated in somatic tumors. In this study, we further showed that cells functioning as germline could be present in mouse fibrosarcoma cells (L929 cell line). Early germline-like cells spontaneously appeared in L929 cells and further differentiated into oocyte-like cells. These germline-like cells can, in turn, develop into blastocyst-like structures in vitro and cause teratocarcinomas in vivo, which is consistent with natural germ cells in function. Generation of germline-like cells from somatic tumors might provide a novel way to understand why somatic cancer cells have strong features of embryonic/germline development. It is thought that the germline traits of tumors are associated with the central characteristics of malignancy, such as immortalization, invasion, migration and immune evasion. Therefore, germline-like cells in tumors might provide potential targets to tumor biology, diagnosis and therapy.

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