NCI-H322 Cells

NCI-H322 is a human non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) cell line derived from an adult patient with a bronchioalveolar carcinoma, a histologic subtype of adenocarcinoma. This cell line was established by the NCI-Navy Medical Oncology Branch as part of a comprehensive effort to generate clinically annotated lung cancer models for research and therapeutic development. NCI-H322 exhibits adherent epithelial morphology in vitro and is typically maintained in RPMI-1640 medium supplemented with 10% fetal bovine serum under standard cell culture conditions.

Molecular profiling of NCI-H322 reveals that it carries a KRAS mutation, which contributes to oncogenic signaling through the MAPK/ERK and PI3K/AKT pathways. This mutation renders the cell line resistant to EGFR-targeted therapies and makes it suitable for studies focused on KRAS-driven lung adenocarcinoma. Additionally, the line is wild-type for EGFR and TP53, offering a defined genetic context for dissecting KRAS-dependent tumor biology. Its transcriptional and proteomic data have been included in large-scale datasets such as the Cancer Cell Line Encyclopedia (CCLE), where it has contributed to analyses of lineage-specific vulnerabilities and drug response patterns.

NCI-H322 has been used extensively in pharmacologic screening and mechanistic studies to explore sensitivity to MEK inhibitors, PI3K pathway inhibitors, and chemotherapeutic agents. Its consistent performance across studies and well-documented mutation profile make it a valuable preclinical model for KRAS-mutant NSCLC, as well as a key reference in efforts to understand tumor heterogeneity and drug resistance in lung adenocarcinoma.