Changes in buoyant density and cell size of Escherichia coli in response to osmotic shocks.

The buoyant density of Escherichia coli was shown to be related to the osmolarity of the growth medium. This was true whether the osmolarity was adjusted with either NaCl or sucrose. When cells were grown at one osmolarity and shocked to another osmolarity, their buoyant density adjusted to nearly suit the new osmolarity. When cells were subjected to hyperosmotic shock, they became denser than expected. When cells were subjected to hypoosmotic shock they occasionally undershot the new projected density, but the undershoot was not as dramatic as the overshoot seen with hyperosmotic shocks. Shrinkage and swelling of the cells in response to osmotic shocks could account for the change in their buoyant density. The changes in cell size after osmotic shocks were measured by two independent methods. The first method measured cell size with a Coulter Counter, and the second method measured cell size by stereologic analysis of Nomarski light micrographs. Both methods gave qualitatively similar results and showed the cells to be flexible. The maximum swelling recorded was 23% of the original cell volume, while the maximum shrinkage observed was 33%.     

Plating efficiency measurements and the experimental control of ageing of adult human skin fibroblasts in vitro.

Adult human skin fibroblasts were serially cultured by means of eleven protocols differing in inoculum size, duration of culture between passage and the ability of the medium to support cell division. Each protocol was terminated only when there were too few cells for further subculturing. The fraction of the cells of an inoculum adhering to the growth surface was unaffected by serial subculturing or by differences in protocol. The final cell count at the end of a period of culture and the plating efficiency for the next culture diminished progressively with serial subculturing. Nevertheless, the computed number of cell generations per culture period of those cells which divided was unaffected by serial passaging. The total number of cell doublings accruing during an entire protocol depended only on the duration of the period of culture between successive passages which was characteristic of that protocol. The observations can be accounted for quantitatively by the following assumptions. A cell which loses its ability to divide after a given period of culture nevertheless continues to grow in size during the next period of culture. The increase in volume of cell substance during any such period is the same whether or not a cell divides. The second postulate is that the probability of a cell being able to divide at the start of a period of culture is proportional to the probability that it will not lose this ability by the following period of culture.     

The physiological state of suspension cultured cells affects the expression of the β-glucuronidase gene following transformation of tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea) protoplasts

Both the stage of the growth cycle and the age of the cell culture used to isolate protoplasts had a pronounced effect on both transient and stable expression of the GUS gene. A level of GUS gene transient expression of 9000 pmol 4MU/μg protein/h and a frequency of GUS gene stable expression of 5.72% were obtained with protoplasts isolated from suspension cultures 10–20 weeks after initiation and 3–4 days after subculturing when an optimized transformation protocol and a rice actin 1 promoter-uidA gene construct were used. The effect of the cell growth cycle on GUS gene transient expression was closely correlated with the growth rate and the rate of protein synthesis in cell cultures whereas prolonged subculturing of the cells resulted in a gradual decline in both transient and stable expression. The length of time cells were digested in cell wall digestion enzyme and the osmolarity of the transformation medium were found to critically affect both the level of transient and stable GUS gene expression. The composition and osmolarity of the protoplast culture medium was less critical for transient GUS gene expression although the osmolarity of the medium was shown to have a significant effect on stable expression of the GUS gene.     

Computer-based image analysis for the automated counting and morphological description of microalgae in culture

A largely unexplored area is the application of digital image processing to counting and sizing of microalgal cells from culture. Commercial systems are available, but have not been tested, nor necessarily optimized for high speed counting and sizing of phytoplankton. The present work describes the design, construction, specifications and comparative performance of an inexpensive system optimized for counting and sizing microalgal cells. This system has been tested with cells of the picoplankton to nanoplankton size ranges (1–20 μm). The hardware was a widely available standard microcomputer, an inexpensive video camera and monitor, and a video digitization board (frame grabber). A modifiable menu-driven program (PHYCOUNT) was written and provisions made to make this program available to other workers. The program is constructed such that it can be adapted to a variety of hardware setups Video digitization boards). Comparison of growth curves for microagae revealed there were no significant differences in division rate and cell yield as assessed by the image analysis method compared to manual counts with a hemacytometer. Several hundred cells were counted routinely within 10–15 s, far exceeding the counting rate achieved by hand tally. A variable transect feature allowed sampling every nth pixel and provided a substantial increase in execution speed. More than 1000 counts can be done per day. A protocol for the use of 96-well plates of polyvinyl chloride as counting chambers contributed to the processing of large numbers of samples rapidly. Other routines developed provided subtended area, defined the coordinates of cell perimeter, and derived cell length and width. The calculation of the latter two parameters was usually done off-line as data output is in standard numerical form accessible by other programs. Experience with daily use of the PHYCOUNT program and imaging hardware reveal that the system is reliable for cell counting and sizing. The presence of bacteria in the algal cultures does not affect cell counting or sizing.     

The effect of osmolarity on metabolism and morphology in adhesion and suspension chinese hamster ovary cells producing tissue plasminogen activator

The effects of constant osmolarity, between 300 and500 mOsm/kg, on the metabolism of Chinese HamsterOvary (CHO) cells producing tissue plasminogenactivator (tPA) were compared between adhesion andsuspension cultures. In both suspension and adhesionculture, the specific rates of glucose consumption(_G), lactate production (q_L), and tPAproduction (q_tPA) increased as osmolarityincreased, while these rates decreased when osmolaritywas higher than the respective critical levels. However, specific growth rate () decreased withincrease in osmolarity and this slope grew steeper inthe osmolarity range higher than the critical level. The decrease in in the adhesion culture was morerapid than that in the suspension culture. Thecritical osmolarity for adhesion culture (400 mOsm/kg)was lower than that for suspension culture (450 mOsm/kg). These results indicated that the adhesionculture was more sensitive to increase of osmolaritythan the suspension culture, while the specific ratesobtained from the adhesion cultures were in general1.5- to 3-fold higher than those obtained from thesuspension cultures. Cell volume increased asosmolarity increased in both the suspension andadhesion cultures, as reported previously forsuspension culture of hybridoma cells, but there wasno morphological change in the suspension culture. Incontrast, cell height decreased and cell adhesion areamarkedly increased as osmolarity increased in theadhesion culture. This morphological change inadhesion cultures may be one reason for the highersensitivity of adherent cells to the increase ofosmolarity than suspended cells.     

日本沼虾雄性生殖细胞原代培养方法

细胞培养方法对于研究虾类疾病、内分泌生理是一种有力的工具。本文介绍了日本沼虾(Macrobrachium nipponense)雄性生殖细胞原代培养的方法。实验发现精原细胞和精母细胞在体外具有较强的分裂能力。通过测定细胞的贴壁率及观察细胞生长情况,初步确定了该类细胞体外培养的最适pH范围为7.2~7.4,渗透压范围为400~500mmol/L。     

Responses to nutrient starvation in Pseudomonas putida KT2442: analysis of general cross-protection, cell shape, and macromolecular content.

The physiology of Pseudomonas putida KT2442 with respect to growth and carbon starvation was studied. During the transition from growth to nongrowth, the cell shape changes from cylindrical to spheric, a change which is accompanied by reductions in cell size, DNA and ribosome content, and the rate of total protein synthesis. In addition, a pattern of general cross-protection develops, which enables the cells to survive environmental stresses such as high and low temperatures, elevated osmolarity, solvents, and oxidative agents. Cultures are almost fully viable during 1 month of carbon, nitrogen, and multiple-nutrient starvation and are considered to be in an active nondormant state. In contrast, strain KT2442 does not survive well under conditions of sulfate and phosphate starvation.     

Selection of synchronous bacterial cultures by density sedimentation.

A procedure previously used to select synchronous cultures of Chlorella was found to produce similar results with the bacterium Lineola longa (Bacillus macroides). A midlog culture of L. longa was layered onto a 31-42% dialyzed Ficoll gradient and ceitruged at 51 000 3 g. The culture sedimented into a broad band in 30 min. Continued centrifugation failed to cause further migration. Cells taken from the top of the band and reinoculated into the broth in which they had previously grown, pH adjusted to 7.0, grew without a lag, doubled in optical density at the same rate as midlog cultures, and divided synchronously. Coulter counter sizing of these cells showed a doubling in volume just before division followed by a halving of volume after division. The major advantages of this method are the low osmolarity of Ficoll and the large volume of cells that can be separated.     

Influence of form of activated charcoal on embryogenic callus formation in coconut (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Cocos nucifera</Emphasis>)

Development of micropropagation protocols for Cocos nucifera has progressed slowly. Activated charcoal is included in the culture medium of each protocol, mainly to prevent tissue browning. Charcoal production procedures can affect the properties of different brands. In this study, eight types of activated charcoal were evaluated for their effects on free 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid level, pH, conductivity, and osmolarity of the culture medium and on the frequency of embryogenic callus induction. Moreover, the effect of particle size of the optimum charcoal type on embryogenic callus development was also studied. Charcoal type had a significant effect on (Y3) culture medium properties. Free 2,4-D was highest in Reactivos y Productos Químicos Finos-containing medium and pH was lowest in MERCK-containing medium. Charcoal type also influenced embryogenic callus induction, with acid washed for plant cell and tissue culture-, DARCO- and United States Pharmacopeia-containing media promoting ~60% embryogenic callus, but with different optimal 2,4-D concentrations. Particle size profiles varied among all charcoal types, although small particle fraction (<38 μm) was abundant in all. Use of small particle fractions produced higher frequencies of embryogenic callus (70%) than either large particle or whole charcoal fractions.     

Culture characteristics of cells derived from type II pneumocyte enriched fractions from rabbit and rat.

Type II cell enriched fractions were isolated from rabbit and rat lungs using density gradient centrifugation. Cultures established from these fractions contained predominantly cells similar in most morphological respects to type II pneumocytes. These were in continuous replicating culture for 1 year and still exhibited contact inhibition. Membrane-bound structures reminiscent of, but no longer strictly identical to, type II cell lamellar cytosomes were seen in cells from these long-term cultures although their numbers were reduced in comparison to lamellar bodies in freshly isolated cells. Mitochondrial numbers and sizes, determined morphometrically, were reduced after culture in comparison to freshly isolated type II cells and those in situ. Phosphatidylcholine was synthesized by these cells and released into the extracellular medium. Application of laser activated electronic sizing data, confirmed by direct micrometry, demonstrated a significant increase in cell size as a function of culture. This sizing data, after prior confirmation by electron microscopy, was used as an aid in identifying type II cells and macrophages in dispersion, especially with those cells derived from rabbit lungs.     

Culture characteristics of cells derived from type II pneumocyte enriched fractions from rabbit and rat

Summary Type II cell enriched fractions were isolated from rabbit and rat lungs using density gradient centrifugation. Cultures established from these fractions contained predominantly cells similar in most morphological respects to type II pneumocytes. These were in continuous replicating culture for 1 year and still exhibited contact inhibition. Membrane-bound structures reminiscent of, but no longer strictly identical to, type II cell lamellar cytosomes were seen in cells from these long-term cultures although their numbers were reduced in comparison to lamellar bodies in freshly isolated cells. Mitochondrial numbers and sizes, determined morphometrically, were reduced after culture in comparison to freshly isolated type II cells and those in situ. Phosphatidylcholine was synthesized by these cells and released into the extracellular medium. Application of laser activated electronic sizing data, confirmed by direct micrometry, demonstrated a significant increase in cell size as a function of culture. This sizing data, after prior confirmation by electron microscopy, was used as an aid in identifying type II cells and macrophages in dispersion, especially with those cells derived from rabbit lungs.     

Production of rosmarinic acid in high density perfusion cultures ofAnchusa officinalis using a high sugar medium

Summary The most direct approach to enhancing the volumetric yield of secondary metabolites in plant tissue cultures is to operate the culture under high cell density. In this study, a cell suspension ofAnchusa officinalis was cultivated using a semi-continuous perfusion technique, i.e. batch cultivation with intermittent medium exchange. Using a perfusion medium containing sucrose concentration which was two times that in the normal growth medium, the final cell density and the final product concentration were increased by more than 2-fold compared with a batch culture without medium exchange. The high cell density obtained from the semi-continuous perfusion culture can be explained by the prevention of nutrient depletion, removal of toxic by-products, as well as the control of cell size by virtue of the high sugar medium osmolarity.     

The Contractile Vacuole as a Key Regulator of Cellular Water Flow in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii

Most freshwater flagellates use contractile vacuoles (CVs) to expel excess water. We have used Chlamydomonas reinhardtii as a green model system to investigate CV function during adaptation to osmotic changes in culture medium. We show that the contractile vacuole in Chlamydomonas is regulated in two different ways. The size of the contractile vacuoles increases during cell growth, with the contraction interval strongly depending on the osmotic strength of the medium. In contrast, there are only small fluctuations in cytosolic osmolarity and plasma membrane permeability. Modeling of the CV membrane permeability indicates that only a small osmotic gradient is necessary for water flux into the CV, which most likely is facilitated by the aquaporin major intrinsic protein 1 (MIP1). We show that MIP1 is localized to the contractile vacuole, and that the expression rate and protein level of MIP1 exhibit only minor fluctuations under different osmotic conditions. In contrast, SEC6, a protein of the exocyst complex that is required for the water expulsion step, and a dynamin-like protein are upregulated under strong hypotonic conditions. The overexpression of a CreMIP1-GFP construct did not change the physiology of the CV. The functional implications of these results are discussed.     

Facilitated electrofusion of vacuolated x evacuolated oat mesophyll protoplasts in hypo-osmolar media after alignment with an alternating field of modulated strength

Electrofusion of evacuolated and vacuolated oat leaf protoplasts is difficult because of the different size and density of these cells which results in separation of the two fusion partners during dielectrophoresis. The fusion yield of this cell system was considerably enhanced by electrofusion in hypo-osmolar media containing 0.4 M mannitol, 0.1 mM calcium acetate and 0.1% bovine serum albumin. This increase in yield was only achieved if the dielectrophoretically induced membrane contact between the two fusion partners was enhanced by an initial short 'burst' of higher field strength (500 V/cm, peak to peak, for 5 s followed by a reduction of to 90 V/cm, peak to peak, for 20 s, frequency 1 MHz). Due to the high field strength of the alternating field at the beginning of cell chain formation separation of fusion partners of different size and density was mainly avoided. Simultaneously, the short duration of this high field 'burst' avoided the generation of lethal effects in the cell membranes. The subsequent low field strength of the alternating field was sufficient to keep the aligned cells in position. Optimum fusion was induced by a single square pulse of 750 V/cm and 30 musec duration. The time required for rounding up of the heterologous fusion products decreased with decreasing osmolarity. Fusion resulted in a 5.7 +/- 1.2% yield of heterologous fusion products (compared to 0.7% using the conventional electrofusion protocol) as determined by flow cytometric assay. About 50% of the vacuolated oat protoplasts and 20-50% of the heterologous fusion products regenerated their cell walls within 5 days after hypo-osmolar treatment, but no cell divisions could be observed. Evacuolated oat protoplasts died after 2-3 days in culture without any detectable cell wall regeneration.     

Macromolecular source as dependent on osmotic pressure and water source: effects on bovine in vitro embryo development and quality

This study evaluated the protective effect of protein, as dependent on osmolarity, and the quality of water sources used to prepare embryo culture media. In Experiment 1, two concentrations of NaCl were used to obtain culture media with normal (280 mOSM) and low (245 mOSM) osmolarity, each supplemented with either bovine serum albumin (BSA) or polyvinyl alcohol (PVA). Low osmolarity improved blastocyst rates in the presence of BSA (P < 0.01) and tended to do it in medium containing PVA (P < 0.07). Furthermore, low osmolarity allowed PVA to increase inner cell mass (ICM) numbers and ICM/total cell rate (P < 0.05), while trophectoderm (TE) and total cell counts tended to decrease (P < 0.08). In Experiment 2, culture media were prepared with two water sources (Milli-Q and Sigma-W3500-) in combination with BSA or PVA. Both water sources yielded similar embryo development rates, but in the presence of BSA, Milli-Q water produced embryos with increased ICM/total cells rates (P < 0.05). On the contrary, Sigma water tended to increase trophectoderm cell counts (P < 0.08). In conclusion, the present study showed that low osmolarity is beneficial to embryo development and combinations of macromolecule and osmolarity influence trophectoderm differentiation. Both Milli-Q and Sigma supported embryo development at comparable rates, although in the presence of BSA, blastocysts obtained in the medium prepared with Milli-Q water had superior quality in terms of ICM/total cells rates.     

Electronic determination of size and number in isolated unfixed adipocyte populations

Adipose tissue cellularity and metabolism are traditionally expressed in terms of mean cell size and number. The need for a simple method allowing rapid determination of cell size and number of freshly isolated, unfixed adipocyte preparations led us to compare estimates of cell size determined by the established method of optical sizing to a proposed method of electronic cell sizing and counting. In collagenase-isolated, unfixed adipocytes whose mean diameters ranged from approximately 40 to 65 microns (obtained from healthy rats weighing 100-360 g) the electronic method provided estimates of the mean cell diameter and size distribution that did not differ from the optical sizing technique. Estimates of mean cell diameter and cell number by the electronic method were rapid and reproducible (coefficients of variation 0.5 and 3.8%, respectively) and a less than 20 sec delay until sample analysis, after mixing of the adipocyte suspension, did not alter these estimates. Electronic determination of cell size and number, using freshly isolated, unfixed rat adipocyte populations (mean cell diameter less than or equal to 60 microns), is rapid and reliable. It will be particularly useful for studies of hormone binding and transport processes where it may be necessary to tightly control cell density.     

Isolation and culture of adult neurons and neurospheres

Here we present a protocol for extraction and culture of neurons from adult rat or mouse CNS. The method proscribes an optimized protease digestion of slices, control of osmolarity and pH outside the incubator with Hibernate and density gradient separation of neurons from debris. This protocol produces yields of millions of cortical, hippocampal neurons or neurosphere progenitors from each brain. The entire process of neuron isolation and culture takes less than 4 h. With suitable growth factors, adult neuron regeneration of axons and dendrites in culture proceeds over 1-3 weeks to allow controlled studies in pharmacology, electrophysiology, development, regeneration and neurotoxicology. Adult neurospheres can be collected in 1 week as a source of neuroprogenitors ethically preferred over embryonic or fetal sources. This protocol emphasizes two differences between neuron differentiation and neurosphere proliferation: adhesion dependence and the differentiating power of retinyl acetate.     

Tracheary element differentiation is correlated with inhibition of cell expansion in xylogenic mesophyll suspension cultures.

To test the hypothesis that xylogenesis is coupled to cell growth suppression, cell expansion in Zinnia elegans L. var. Envy mesophyll suspension cultures was manipulated by varying the extracellular osmolarity and the effect on xylogenesis was examined. Cell expansion and tracheary element differentiation were inversely related along a gradient of extracellular osmolarity ranging from 200 to 400 mOsm, supporting the hypothesis that tracheary element differentiation is coupled to cessation of cell expansion. Above 300 mOsm, reduction in the number of cells that differentiated into tracheary elements coincided with an increase in the number of plasmolyzed cells as extracellular osmolarity was increased, indicating that plasmolysis inhibits tracheary element differentiation, although not specifically. Using the plasmolysis method we showed that cellular osmolarity within populations of isolated Zinnia mesophyll cells ranges from 250 to 600 mOsm with a mean of 425 mOsm. The broad range in cellular osmolarity within Zinnia mesophyll cell populations, coupled with inhibition of differentiation in the low range due to cell expansion and in the high range due to plasmolysis, may help explain why tracheary element differentiation in Zinnia suspension cultures is never complete nor perfectly synchronous and enable further optimization of this culture system.     

Erythrocyte and ghost cytoplasmic resistivity and voltage-dependent apparent size.

Particle resistivity is explicitly included in the equations relating volume to voltage pulse, in electronic cell sizing or resistive pulse spectroscopy (RPS). It has long been known that in high electric fields cell resistivity decreases as the membrane undergoes dielectric breakdown. At sufficiently high electric field strengths, well past dielectric breakdown, the red cell membrane becomes electrically transparent, or nearly so, and apparent cell size becomes essentially a function of the cytoplasmic resistivity. Electronic cell sizing is traditionally carried out at low electric field strengths, and corrections made for the influence of cell shape by use of the Laplace equation. We find the Laplace solution to be still applicable at very high electric field strengths for purposes of calculating specific cytoplasmic resistivity from RPS measurements. Our value for discocytes, 220 omega X cm, is in good agreement with published results obtained by other researchers using other techniques. We have also applied these same procedures to determine the time course of voltage-dependent resistivity changes in ghosts and intact spherocytes, during the first 5 min after suspension in hypotonic medium. We believe these to be the first explicit calculations of particle specific resistivity from post-dielectric-breakdown apparent size, using traditional electronic sizing techniques.     

Cell morphometry and osmolarity as early indicators of the onset of embryogenesis from cell suspension cultures of grain legumes and model systems

Abstract

Whatever the in vitro regeneration pathway, it would be of interest to be able to distinguish regeneration-competent from non-regenerating cells and tissues, and as early in culture as possible, as this would allow a dramatic improvement of biotechnology breeding, particularly for the so-called recalcitrant species. With this aim, we examined a range of genotypes of pea (Pisum sativum) and grass pea (Lathyrus sativus), and of the two model species Medicago truncatula, another legume, and Arabidopsis thaliana. This was done by comparing cell suspension cultures of different ages (young [<6 transfers-old]vs. mature [>6 transfers-old]), densities (dense [>10⁷ cells/ml] or sparse [<10⁶ cells/ml]) and regeneration abilities (non-embryogenic vs. embryogenic), in order to identify early indicators of competence for somatic embryogenesis. All such cell suspensions were subcultured every 14 days and several parameters were assessed every 3–4 days during each 14-day cycle. These included the time course pH and osmolarity of the culture medium, the internal osmolarity of cells, the cell surface and the cell wall thickness (by examining cellulose accumulation in Calcofluor White-stained cells under UV light). As cells underwent embryogenesis they enlarged. Cellulose accumulated in the walls of non-embryogenic cells, but walls became thinner with the onset of embryogenesis, and diminished further as embryos matured. Although medium osmolarity decreased at the onset of embryogenesis, this was never observed for non-embryogenic cell suspensions. Conversely, there was a concomitant increase in intracellular osmolarity for embryogenic cells. Medium pH (analysed with the model species only) was not significantly correlated with regeneration competence of cells. For all genotypes and species, the kinetics of cell wall thickness and cell surface, and that of medium and cell osmolarity were reliable early indicators of the competence of cells to undergo somatic embryogenesis. The implication of these results for biotechnological breeding of grain legumes and for plant regeneration competence in general are discussed.