Morphology and 125I-concentration of embryonic chick thyroids cultured in an atmosphere of oxygen

In vitro culture of whole thyroid glands may lead to loss of differentiation and function. Comparison by histology, histoautoradiography and gammacounting of 125I-concentration, of 12 to 13 days old embryonic chick thyroids, cultured on a gyratory shaker either in an atmosphere of 5% CO2 and air or of 95% O2 and 5% CO2, shows that a high concentration of O2 maintains the morphological and functional integrity of the thyroids for at least 4 days.