Rat luteal cells in tissue culture: a technique for obtaining primary cell culture without enzymatic dissociation.

A technique for obtaining isolated luteal cells without any prior enzymatic dissociation of the rat corpus luteum (CL) has been developed. With a view to obviate any kind of chemical/biophysical trauma to the cells the latter were obtained following simple migration of cells from small pieces of chopped up CL (8-10 day old) put in culture. The cells started migrating in progressively increasing numbers from these tissue pieces within 24 hr leading to monolayer formation by day 10-12 of culture. The cells were found to grow under the described conditions for 35 days without any exogenous hormonal supplementation. The technique is being utilized for characterization of different cell types of the rat CL of pregnancy and the regulatory mechanisms involved in their metabolic function and/or regression.