In vitro preservation of human pituitary tumours in organotypic differentiation.

Three types of human pituitary adenomas--growth hormone producing, prolactin producing, as well as endocrinologically inactive ('chromophobe') tumours--were explanted to an in vitro system for organ culture. After one month, surviving hypophyseal cells demonstrated preserved hormone activity and no dedifferentiation of cell characteristics. During the first weeks in culture, close similarity existed between in vivo and in vitro conditions with regard to cell survival/cell morphology and physiological function/hormone release.