Endocrinology, Vol 105, 967-974, Copyright © 1979 by Endocrine Society

ARTICLES

Human chorionic gonadotropin in BeWo trophoblastic cells after 12 years in continuous culture: retention of intact human chorionic gonadotropin secretion in mechanically versus enzyme-dispersed cells

RA Pattillo, RO Hussa, AC Ruckert, JW Kurtz, JM Cade and ML Rinke

Gel filtration and radioimmunological studies were used to demonstrate that BeWo malignant trophoblastic cells, subcultured for more than 12 yr as roller tube colonies using dissection by scalpel, retained the ability to secrete large quantities of intact hCG. By contrast, BeWo cells that had been subcultured weekly for 12 hr using proteolytic enzyme dispersion lost their ability to secrete intact hCG. Rather, a large form of hCG-alpha was the major secretory product, along with lesser amounts of heterogeneous low molecular weight forms of hCG-beta. The gradual loss of hormone secretory ability and fidelity of hormone product by cells in continuous culture is a well known phenomenon. Our results suggest that the habitual use of trypsin-EDTA to subculture cells may accelerate this process.

This article has been cited by other articles:

				N. C. Talbot, T. J. Caperna, J. L. Edwards, W. Garrett, K. D. Wells, and A. D. Ealy Bovine Blastocyst-Derived Trophectoderm and Endoderm Cell Cultures: Interferon Tau and Transferrin Expression as Respective In Vitro Markers Biol Reprod, February 1, 2000; 62(2): 235 - 247. [Abstract] [Full Text]

				F. Liu, M. J. Soares, and K. L. Audus Permeability properties of monolayers of the human trophoblast cell line BeWo Am J Physiol Cell Physiol, November 1, 1997; 273(5): C1596 - C1604. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]