Behaviour of Explanted Kidney Cells from Young, Adult and Old Rats

Abstract

In tissue fragment cultures, the kidney from newborn rats has a significantly shorter latent period than the kidney from adult and old rats. The kidney from old rats has a significantly longer latent period than the kidney from adult rats. The epithelial cells from young donors grow rich compact membranes composed of small healthy cells, while the kidneys from adult and old donors show small thin membranes of anisocytic epithelium composed of large cells often vacuolized and with degenerating nuclei. The growth of newborn kidney is not influenced when cultured in a medium where tissue from older donors was living for several days. In trypsinized tissue culture system, the kidneys of old donors are characterized by a small cellular yield after trypsinization and by quick degeneration, while the kidneys of young donors give good cellular yields, multiply and form monolayers during 2-3 weeks of cultivation. Aging is a property of the cells themselves, aggravated by further changes in the whole organism.