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Establishment of cell lines from the wild rodent Millardia meltada and tests for endogenous virus
Abstract:
Four cell lines were established from the wild rodent, Millardia meltada; an untransformed cell line (MM-D), a non-producer (NP) cell line transformed with murine sarcoma virus (MM-CL4), and SV40-transformed cell lines (MM-8 MM-663). MM-D is epithelioid and contact-inhibited, whereas MM-CL4, MM-8, and MM-663 are fibroblastic and grow piling up. No endogenous virus was induced in Millardia cell lines by a long-term culture with various inducers. Millardia cell DNA has no nucleotide sequence homology with cDNA of either murine leukemia virus or rat endogenous virus.
Insights
New Millardia meltada cell lines were created, including untransformed, murine sarcoma virus-transformed, and SV40-transformed cells. These rodent cell lines showed no signs of endogenous virus induction or homology with known retroviruses.
Area of Science:
- Virology
- Cell Biology
- Rodent Models
Background:
- Establishment of cell lines from wild rodents is crucial for comparative studies.
- Millardia meltada is a wild rodent species with limited characterized cell lines.
Purpose of the Study:
- To establish and characterize novel cell lines from Millardia meltada.
- To investigate the potential for endogenous viral expression in these cell lines.
- To assess genetic relatedness to known murine and rat retroviruses.
Main Methods:
- Cell culture techniques for establishing untransformed and transformed cell lines.
- Morphological and growth characteristic analysis (e.g., contact inhibition, piling up).
- Viral induction assays using various inducers.
- Nucleotide sequence homology studies using cDNA probes.
Main Results:
- Four Millardia meltada cell lines were successfully established: MM-D (untransformed, epithelioid, contact-inhibited), MM-CL4 (murine sarcoma virus-transformed, fibroblastic, non-producer), and MM-8, MM-663 (SV40-transformed, fibroblastic).
- No endogenous retroviral activity was detected in any cell line after prolonged culture with inducers.
- Millardia cell DNA showed no sequence homology with murine leukemia virus or rat endogenous virus cDNA.
Conclusions:
- The established Millardia meltada cell lines provide valuable tools for biological research.
- These cell lines do not harbor detectable endogenous retroviruses and lack homology with common murine and rat retroviruses.
- Further research can utilize these characterized cell lines for various scientific investigations.