PREPARATION OF FUNCTIONALLY ACTIVE IMMOBILIZED AND PERFUSED MAMMALIAN-CELLS - AN EXAMPLE OF THE HEPATOCYTE BIOREACTOR

Citation
H. Farghali et al., PREPARATION OF FUNCTIONALLY ACTIVE IMMOBILIZED AND PERFUSED MAMMALIAN-CELLS - AN EXAMPLE OF THE HEPATOCYTE BIOREACTOR, Physiological Research, 43(2), 1994, pp. 121-125
Citations number
11
Categorie Soggetti
Physiology
Journal title
ISSN journal
08628408
Volume
43
Issue
2
Year of publication
1994
Pages
121 - 125
Database
ISI
SICI code
0862-8408(1994)43:2<121:POFAIA>2.0.ZU;2-P
Abstract
In the present study, a method has been employed for hepatocyte immobi lization in agarose threads which allows for cell perfusion. The rat h epatocytes are isolated from the liver. A 1.8 % low-gelling agarose so lution is prepared in warm Krebs-Henseleit solution. The agarose solut ion is mixed 1:1 with the hepatocytes and the cells are immobilized in agarose threads by extruding the agarose-cell mixture through cooled Chemfluor teflon (TFE) tubing. Light and electron microscopy studies i ndicated the integrity of the hepatocytes in the gel matrix. This syst em allows for liver cell perfusion and viability studies to be carried out non-invasively on the cells and provides data that are comparable to those obtained with a perfused isolated liver. Immobilized hepatoc ytes are an in vitro system worthy of further evaluation which may be useful in the studies of liver cell metabolism and the response of the liver to foreign chemicals.