Functional and Morphological Response of In Vitro Lung and Myocardial Test Objects to Experimental Gas Environments

Abstract

Innovations in the use of lung and myocardial tissue in vitro have permitted continuous morphological observation of cells treated with a controlled gaseous environment. The mammalian tissues are covered with a dialysis membrane and cultured in a Rose chamber containing a large gas phase. Test gases can be flushed continuously through two hypodermic needles in the culture chamber wall. Cell movement and morphology have been recorded with time lapse cinematography in chambers containing cells washed from lung airways or organotypic lung cultures. Myocardial cell morphology and beating rate have been analyzed with the aid of a remote TV monitoring system. Histochemical and ultrastructural techniques were also applied. The beating rate of myocardial cells was found to be an objective and convenient endpoint for testing the characteristics of the exposure system. A comparison of the response of cells in the gas phase with that of elements in the fluid phase within the same chamber suggested that this system can serve as a model for evaluating the effect of an increasing diffusion barrier.