title: Optimization of bulk cell electrofusion in vitro for production of human-mouse heterohybridoma cells.
abstract: Cell electrofusion is a phenomenon that occurs, when cells are in close contact and exposed to short high-voltage electric pulses. The consequence of exposure to pulses is transient and nonselective permeabilization of cell membranes. Cell electrofusion and permeabilization depend on the values of electric field parameters including amplitude, duration and number of electric pulses and direction of the electric field. In our study, we first investigated the influence of the direction of the electric field on cell fusion in two cell lines. In both cell lines, applications of pulses in two directions perpendicular to each other were the most successful. Cell electrofusion was finally used for production of human-mouse heterohybridoma cells with modified Koehler and Milstein hybridoma technology, which was not done previously. The results, obtained by cell electrofusion, are comparable to usually used polyethylene glycol mediated fusion on the same type of cells.
authors.affiliation: University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Trzaska 25, SI-1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia.
authors.forename: Katja
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Trontelj
authors.forename: Matej
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rebersek
authors.forename: Masa
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kanduser
authors.forename: Vladka Curin
authors.initials: VC
authors.lastname: Serbec
authors.forename: Marjana
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sprohar
authors.forename: Damijan
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Miklavcic
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002459:Cell Fusion / Q000379:methods*; D018274:Electroporation / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D006825:Hybridomas / Q000166:cytology*; D051379:Mice