Epithelioid Cell Strains Derived from Rabbit Peripheral Blood∗

Mononuclear leukocytes obtained from rabbits by cardiac puncture, and purified of erythrocytes by gravity sedimentation in a gelatin solution and of platelets and polymorphonuclear leukocytes by filtration through nylon columns, gave rise to cell strains when cultured for 2 weeks. During serial passage, the emergent strains retained a diploid number of chromosomes and displayed a morphology ranging from the fusiform to the epithelioid. Similar cell strains were also initiated by culture of cells obtained by needle biopsy simulating cardiac puncture in the thoracic region. Contrariwise, cell populations could not be established from blood drawn from the exposed femoral artery. These observations cast doubt on previous reports which suggest that stable tissue culture cell populations were derived from cells of the blood. The use of aspiration material from the chest provides a simple and reproducible method of initiating primary cell strains from rabbits.