HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Ishizaka, T. Articles by Ishizaka, K. Search for Related Content PubMed Articles by Ishizaka, T. Articles by Ishizaka, K.

Development of Mast Cells in Vitro

II. Biologic Function of Cultured Mast Cells¹

From the Department of Medicine, The Johns Hopkins University, School of Medicine at the Good Samaritan Hospital, Baltimore, Maryland 21239

Abstract

Mast cells were obtained by long term culture of rat thymus cells on rat embryonic fibroblast monolayers. Pure mast cell preparations obtained by culture were incubated with ¹²⁵I-labeled rat E myeloma protein to study receptors for IgE on their surface. When the cells were obtained after 35 to 45 days culture, the average number of receptors per mast cell was 100,000 to 400,000. An equilibrium constant of the binding reaction between their receptor and rat IgE was in the order of 10⁸ M^-1. The histamine content of the cultured mast cells was 0.2 to 5 µg/10⁶ cells. The measurement of histamine content in mast cells recovered after different periods of culture suggested that the histamine content increased with maturation. Even after 45 to 50 days culture, the histamine content of cultured mast cells was significantly lower than that in rat peritoneal mast cells. The cultured mast cells were passively sensitized in vitro with rat IgE antibody against Nippostrongylus brasiliensis. The sensitized cells released histamine upon incubation with the antigen. It was also found that cultured mast cells released histamine upon exposure to compound 48/80. These results indicated that cultured mast cells have physiologic functions similar to those of normal rat mast cells, but they have not reached full maturation.

Footnotes

¹ This work was supported by Research Grant AI-10060 from the United States Public Health Service and partly by a grant from Lillia Babbit Hyde Foundation. This paper is publication 180 from the O'Neill Memorial Laboratories, The Good Samaritan Hospital, Baltimore, Maryland.