Early and late volume changes during erythroid differentiation of cultured Friend leukemic cells

Friend erythroleukemic cells (FLC) can be induced to differentiate in vitro by addition of dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO). We have studied the kinetics of induction by measuring cell volume, volume coefficient of variation and cell doubling time. Two distinct volume changes (early and late) are observed after the addition of the inducing agent. The early change occurs after ten hours and consist of a 10-20% decrease in volume compared to an untreated control population. This shift persists for two days and its magnitude is proportional to both the concentration of DMSO and the number of differentiated cells seen on day 5. FLC lines which induce weakly or not all with DMSO exhibit a reduced or absent early volume shift. Inclusion of a local anaesthetic in the culture prevents the appearance of differentiated cells and also counteracts the early volume shift. The exact time of the early volume change is a function of cell growth rate and appears to be cell cycle related. Synchronized cell populations exposed to DMSO during G2 and S phase undergo one round of mitosis before expression of the volume change whereas cells in G2-M express the change only after a second mitosis. A later, more gradual decrease in volume is observed in those cultures which begin to produce hemoglobin. It occurs after approximately five doubling times and coincides with the first appearance of hemoglobin-containing cells. Volume distribution parameters indicate that only a proportion of the population becomes smaller in size.