Summary
Suspensions of viable testicular cells obtained from two groups of rats (one group treated for ten days with 50 I. U. of serum gonadotropins (HCG) daily; one group not previously treated) were cultured for ten days. Numerous cells adhered to the glass to form a confluent monolayer and remained in good condition after ten days. This monolayer contained two cell types identified by electron microscopy: fibroblastic cells and Leydig cells. The relative proportion by which these two cells contributed to the monolayer was related to the condition of the donor when the culture was initiated. Fibroblastic cells were more abundant when the animal was not previously treated with HCG. However Leydig cells almost exclusively formed the monolayer when cultures were begun with testicular cells of HCG-treated rats. Gonadotropins on the other hand did not seem capable of acting in vitro.
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Vilar, O., Steinberger, A. & Steinberger, E. Electron microscopy of isolated rat testicular cells grown in vitro . Z.Zellforsch 74, 529–538 (1966). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00496842
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00496842