ESTABLISHMENT OF A RAT SERTOLI-CELL LINE THAT DISPLAYS THE MORPHOLOGICAL AND SOME OF THE FUNCTIONAL-CHARACTERISTICS OF THE NATIVE CELL

Primary rat Sertoli cells are widely used as a model for mechanistic a nd toxicological studies, since they are often the target of toxicants in vivo. However, their isolation from testicular homogenates is tedi ous and requires the regular use of numerous immature animals. It is t herefore of great interest to have available established cell lines th at are usable in vitro for unlimited periods and closely similar to na tive cells. To this end, we have established a line of Wistar rat Sert oli cells (SerW3) by immortalization of fresh primary cells with the T antigens of the Simian virus (SV40). When plated on Matrigel, this ce ll line presents many of the functional characteristics of Sertoli cel ls in vivo. In addition, they are sensitive to cisplatin and secrete t ransferrin, although they do not show a clear response to follicle-sti mulating hormone. They also present many morphological similarities, i ncluding the presence of tight junctions which mimic the natural epith elial barrier. Like Sertoli cells in vivo, they show extensive phagocy tic activity. Finally, they display all the characteristics of immorta lized, but not transformed, cells, i.e., topo-inhibition and apoptosis at confluence or under serum deprivation.