Isolation of Living Endothelial Cells by Gelatin-Film Stripping of Vascular Walls

Abstract

The few available techniques for the isolation of fresh endothelial cells yield harvests heavily contaminated with other cells. A procedure which we have found to be both selective and compatible with viability entails the use of gelatin-coated slides to separate the endothelial surface. When the gelatin has set and the vessel is peeled off, about 7680% of the endothelial cells remain on the slide; of these, less than 10% are other cell types. That the procedure is compatible with survival may be demonstrated by culturability of the harvested cells.