Chicken fetal intestine in tissue culture.

A simple and reproducible method for cultivation of fetal chicken small intestine is presented. The culture was performed in a defined medium without serum. Duodena were excised from embryos at the 14th day of fetal development and cut in small segments that were maintained in culture until day 16. It could be shown that the morphology of cultured intestine resembles that of noncultured gut of corresponding age as judged by light microscopy. The increase in activity of sucrase and maltase in cultured explants is comparable with that of intestine in ovo, whereas that of alkaline phosphatase is lower than under in vivo conditions. Hormones (thyroxine, dexamethasone) influence the enzymic pattern of fetal intestine in a known manner. Therefore, the method permits maintenance of fetal intestine in tissue culture for 2 days, a period sufficient for investigation of maturation processes of intestinal mucosa.