Figure 7.
Hypertonic sucrose protects epithelial sheets from disintegration. Control (A) and sucrose-treated (B) monolayers were disattached from cell substrates via incubation with trypsin in the presence of calcium. After inactivation of trypsin, monolayers were transferred into EDTA-containing media and were shaken in bacterial shaker for 20 min (100 rpm at 37°C). Note that control but not sucrose-treated monolayers breakdown to small aggregates or single cells. Also note striking differences in the morphology of individual cells in the aggregates. In the control case (A) aggregates consist of loosely connected rounded cells, whereas cells are tightly packed in the case of hypertonic sucrose (B).