Characteristics of renal collecting tubule cells in primary culture.

Isolated nephron segments have been suitable for many types of kidney experiments. Nevertheless, the quantity of cells easily obtained is insufficient for many biochemical analyses. The advent of tissue culture has provided an alternative which allows researchers to work with large numbers of a single cell type. Unfortunately, the parentage of many established cell lines is uncertain. Madin-Darby canine kidney cells, for instance, while most like epithelial cells of distal origin, also retain characteristics of other kidney epithelial cells. Established cell lines have undergone dedifferentiation. For those biochemical experiments in which a closer link to 'physiological relevance' was desired, it was necessary to develop the technology to isolate large numbers of a single identifiable kidney cell type. In this review, some of the characteristics of an isolated population of one particular cell type, the collecting tubule cell, will be discussed.