Explant organ culture of hamster alimentary tract epithelium.

Adult Syrian Golden hamster alimentary tract maintained as explants in organ culture was studied using the model system for hamster pancreas described by Resau et al. (1983a). Explants of esophagus, stomach, duodenum and colon were maintained in organ culture on Gelfoam sponge rafts in a high-oxygen atmosphere with serum-supplemented CMRL-1066 medium. All of the tissues were observed to show evidence of sublethal acute cell injury during the first several days of culture. Subsequently, the epithelial tissues recovered from this injury, repopulated the denuded areas of the explants and replicated within the sponge matrix. Explants were maintained in a differentiated state for 30+ days and sampled for morphology to examine to process of cell injury, repair, differentiation and replication which occurs in mucosal epithelia. The percentage of basement membrane covered by epithelia in the explants from various tissues was compared to the level of LDH in the media to reveal the relationship between viability determined by biochemical and by morphological methods. Restitution of the mucosal surface occurred in all of the explants. We conclude that adequate populations of replicating cells are maintained within the epithelium of the hamster alimentary tract tissues in vitro so that restitution can occur through migration and subsequent differentiation of the epithelial cells within the mucosa of the explants.