Unsaturated fatty acids in mammalian cell strains cultured for more than 10 years in serum-free synthetic media.

In cultured cells, essential lipids are usually supplied by the serum added to the culture medium. However, in a serum-free medium, essential lipids would need to be synthesized by the cells. Cell strains derived from kidney, spleen, uterine carcinoma and fibroblasts were cultured in serum-free synthetic media for more than 10 years and their fatty acids were analyzed capillary column gas-liquid-chromatography. The following conclusions were drawn: 1. Polyunsaturated fatty acids were not detected. Thus, prostaglandins are not appear to be essential for initiation of DNA synthesis in these cells. 2. A compensatory increase of the content of monounsaturated fatty acids was detected. 3. A large difference in vaccenic/oleic acid ratio was found among several strains of cells, but the ratio does not reflect that of the original tissues.