title: Serum-free culture conditions for serial subculture of undifferentiated PC12 cells.
abstract: PC12 cells, a widely used model neuronal cell line, are usually cultured in serum-supplemented medium. This report describes a serum-free medium for the culture of PC12 cells. PC12 cells grown in the two media types had similar growth rates and released dopamine in response to high potassium-induced calcium elevation. However, the levels of dopamine and of dopamine release in cells cultured in the serum-free medium were less than 10% of that in cells cultured in serum-supplemented medium. Dopamine levels recovered within 10 days if cells were returned to serum-supplemented medium, but dopamine release could not be recovered. Nerve growth factor (NGF) induced similar responses in PC12 cells cultured in both media, including phosphorylation of extracellular signal-regulated protein kinases and neurite extension. Transferrin was necessary for survival of neurite-bearing PC12 cells subcultured in serum-free medium and insulin promoted the cells proliferation. Ten days culture with NGF produced a similar increase in neurofilament expression and acetylcholinesterase activity in both media. These results suggest that PC12 in the hormonally defined serum-free media are qualitatively the same as those cultured in serum-supplemented media, and therefore this new culture protocol should enable more precise studies of PC12 cells culture in the absence of confounding unknown factors.
authors.affiliation: Department of Basic Science, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, The University of Tokyo, 3-8-1 Komaba, Meguro, Tokyo 153-8902, Japan.
authors.forename: Kiyoshi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ohnuma
authors.forename: Yohei
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Hayashi
authors.forename: Miho
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Furue
authors.forename: Kunihiko
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kaneko
authors.forename: Makoto
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Asashima
mesh_terms: D000110:Acetylcholinesterase / Q000378:metabolism*; D000818:Animals; D018929:Cell Culture Techniques / Q000379:methods*; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D002460:Cell Line; D049109:Cell Proliferation; D002470:Cell Survival; D016895:Culture Media, Serum-Free / Q000378:metabolism; D004298:Dopamine / Q000378:metabolism*; D020932:Nerve Growth Factor / Q000378:metabolism*; D009474:Neurons / Q000166:cytology* / Q000502:physiology*; D016716:PC12 Cells; D051381:Rats
chemical_list: D016895:Culture Media, Serum-Free; D020932:Nerve Growth Factor; D000110:Acetylcholinesterase; D004298:Dopamine