Electrofused mammalian cells analyzed by free-flow electrophoresis

Somatic cell fusion is a powerful and widely used technique. In recent years, electrofusion has become increasingly popular because it is a gentle process that can be optically controlled and carefully monitored using appropriate fusion chambers and because it permits the efficient fusion of smaller cell numbers. However, damage of the cell membrane and cell lysis occurs during application of the electrical field and is accompanied by changes in surface charge which can be detected by free-flow electrophoresis. In this study, we evaluated free-flow electrophoresis to detect changes in cell viability after application of electric-field conditions employed in mammalian cell electrofusion and to separate dead cells and cell debris from intact unfused or fused cells.