Effects of intercellular junction protein expression on intracellular ice formation in mouse insulinoma cells.

ABSTRACT: The development of cryopreservation procedures for tissues has proven to be difficult in part because cells within tissue are more susceptible to intracellular ice formation (IIF) than are isolated cells. In particular, previous studies suggest that cell-cell interactions increase the likelihood of IIF by enabling propagation of ice between neighboring cells, a process thought to be mediated by gap junction channels. In this study, we investigated the effects of cell-cell interactions on IIF using three genetically modified strains of the mouse insulinoma cell line MIN6, each of which expressed key intercellular junction proteins (connexin-36, E-cadherin, and occludin) at different levels. High-speed video cryomicroscopy was used to visualize the freezing process in pairs of adherent cells

SUBMITTER: Higgins AZ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3824721 | biostudies-literature | 2013 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature