title: Mycoplasma provides for the spreading of opossum kidney cells in a serum-free, defined medium.
abstract: During the course of investigating the growth and differentiation of opossum kidney cells in serum-free medium, it was observed that a mycoplasma contamination (M. hyorhinis) contributed to the spreading of cells. Contaminated cells, seeded on collagen-coated plates, spread out and grew to confluency in Dulbecco's modified eagle's medium/Ham's F12 nutrient mixture containing insulin, transferrin, sodium selenite, and bovine serum albumin fraction V. In addition, differentiated characteristics, including parathyroid hormone-inhibitable, sodium-dependent phosphate transport, were expressed by these cells grown in this medium. After the infection was eradicated, the contamination-free cells would not spread out and proliferate in the same serum-free medium as they had done in the presence of mycoplasma. Normal cellular development, however, was attained after cells were plated in serum-free medium that included fetuin. Cells once again spread out, grew to confluency, and were able to express their differentiated characteristics.
authors: Department of Medicine, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina 27710.
authors: L J
authors: LJ
authors: Leiderman
authors: V W
authors: VW
authors: Dennis
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001692:Biological Transport / Q000187:drug effects; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D002455:Cell Division / Q000187:drug effects; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D003470:Culture Media; D007668:Kidney / Q000166:cytology* / Q000382:microbiology; D009174:Mycoplasma / Q000502:physiology*; D009893:Opossums; D010281:Parathyroid Hormone / Q000494:pharmacology; D010710:Phosphates / Q000378:metabolism; D012964:Sodium / Q000494:pharmacology; D000509:alpha-Fetoproteins / Q000494:pharmacology
chemical_list: D003470:Culture Media; D010281:Parathyroid Hormone; D010710:Phosphates; D000509:alpha-Fetoproteins; D012964:Sodium