Growth limitation of 3T3 mouse fibroblasts by available growth surface area and medium components.

Studies with untransformed fibroblasts demonstrate that growth of these cells in culture can be limited by the availability of both growth surface and medium components. Experiments using cells grown on coverslips, in which the only variable was available growth surface, indicate that when the medium to cell ratio is high, surface area is the principal factor limiting growth. At low medium to cell ratios, however, growth of cells is predominantly limited by medium components. The final number of cells per culture is almost directly proportional to available surface area when the culture medium is changed daily.