[Cell rounding in variant sublines of the L line caused by a moderate decrease in temperature].

Several novel variants of mouse transformed L cells are described. A distinctive trait of these variants, isolated by different methods, is a rounding of the majority of cells under the influence of the moderate cooling (at 18 degrees C for 30-60 min). In the serum-free medium, no rounding occurs. The rounding is presumably an active contraction, because it is inhibited by cytochalasin B. The comparison of the phenotype of wild-type and variant cells has shown that the exposure of cultures at 18 degrees leads to a disturbance of cell adhesion to the substratum in both the cell lines. The intensive rounding of variant cells at 18 degrees is due to some defect in their attachment to the substratum, which can be revealed not only at 18 degrees, but also at 37 degrees. By the selection procedure described in this paper, a large group of cell variants defective in adhesion to the substratum may be isolated.