Isolation of basal and mucous cell populations from rabbit trachea.

The application of a unit gravity sedimentation procedure to monodispersed rabbit tracheal cells resulted in the isolation of enriched (2-fold to 2.5-fold) basal and mucous cell populations. Cellular integrity was confirmed by a trypan blue dye exclusion index of 93%, [3H] leucine incorporation, and ultrastructural analysis. Unit gravity sedimentation is an affective and rapid procedure for obtaining viable, homogeneous preparations of basal and mucous cells that may be used for in vitro studies of cellular proliferation, differentiation, and glycoprotein biosynthesis in respiratory mucous epithelia.