Isolation of transitional epithelial cells from the rat urinary bladder.

A method was developed to isolate transitional cells from the mucous lining of the rat urinary bladder by treatment with ethylene diaminetetraacetic acid and sonication. The isolated cells were examined by phase contrast microscopy, Giemsa staining, and scanning electron microscopy. Two types of isolated cells were distinguished: large ones which were characterized as superficial cells and smaller ones which seemed to be intermediate basal cells.