Comparison of skeletal muscle monolayer cultures initiated with cells dissociated by the vortex and trypsin methods.

Monolayer cultures of 12-day embryonic chick skeletal muscle were prepared from cells dissociated with crude trypsin (Difco 1:250) and by a mechanical method that utilizes shearing forces obtained in a vortex of flowing medium. For each technique, experiments were performed in which the feeding schedule and density of cells planted were varied. Culture growoth was observed microscopically and with time-lapse cinematography. Regardless of the parameter varied, the time of onset of fusion and the extent of myotube formation were greatly improved in cultures initiated with the vortex-dissociated muscle cells.