Cytology Project

[ShellSurrendered77]

Hi! I have a few questions on a science project on the topic of cytology. I am pretty sure that I will be able to decide on a problem; I was just wondering if someone might know (1) if cells can be kept alive for a longer period of time, (2) if cells should be ordered (and if so, from where) or obtained from a plant or animal part such as an onion or a chicken liver, and (3) which cell type is best to use to study? I know these are pretty broad subjects; I am willing to most all of the research, but I just need to be pointed in the right direction. Thank you ahead of time for your help!
~Hannah

[scottcurrie]

Hi Hanna,

It sounds like you want to maintain dissociated living cells for long periods of time. Dissociated cells are those that have been separated from living tissues. But keeping dissociated cells alive for long periods usually takes a great deal of specialized equipment and special nutrient media, etc. This would probably only be feasible if you had access and expert assistance from a cell biology laboratory.

But there are a variety of experiments related to cell biology/cytology you could do on your own that don't require dissociated cells maintained for long periods. Instead, you might consider studying the properties of plant cells that remain in the intact plant, and/or freshly obtained blood samples to examine red blood cells.

For example, you can get some ideas here for experiments relating to OSMOSIS and TONICITY in plant and animal (red blood) cells: http://sciencefair.math.iit.edu/projects/tonicity/
These are simple experiments, but you will need access to a light microscope.

I hope this is of some help.

Scott C.

[caraskl]

Hi Hanna,

Tissue culture pertains to growing cells removed from plants or animals and growing them on the surface of a culture vessel that contains solid media or liquid conducive to the cells' growth. You can buy cell cultures from organizations such as the ATCC (www.atcc.org), the Coriell Institute for Medical research (ccr.coriell.org), or from other laboratories. Cell cultures from the ATCC and the Coriell Institute for Medical Research are less likely to be contaminated with other cell lines, bacteria, fungi, and yeast. Some cell lines are considered immortal, because they divide indefinitely and grow quickly. Immortal cell cultures can continue to grow as long as certain environmental conditions are maintained: the temperature range is set at the same point as the body temperature of organism from which the cells originated; a substrate is available for cell attachment; and the culture medium provides nutrients, growth factors, and gasses as well as maintain an appreciate pH and osmolality. Protecting cells from contamination is also important. Do you have access to laminar flow hood? Scientists often work with cell cultures inside the hood, because the hood minimizes the amount of air bacteria and contaminants that can potentially contaminate the cell cultures. If you would like more information, you may want to contact the ATCC or Coriell, because they would know about maintaining cell cultures. I hope this helps.

[scottcurrie]

I would just bear in mind that most biomedical supply companies of the types that sell cell lines, etc., have strict distribution policies - limiting their sales to research or commercial use. See for example: http://www.atcc.org/Support/How_to_Orde ... olicy.aspx

Scott Currie

[SciB]

Hi Hannah,

The other experts have all given you good information about culturing and working with mammalian cells, but unless you are experienced and have access to a university biomedical sciences lab with a mentor to help you, I don't think these types of experiment would be feasible to consider as a short-term science project.

If you want to work with cells I would suggest using single-celled algae. These can be grown easily in a simple nutrient solution with sunlight as the energy source. Diatoms are my favorite. They can be purchased from Carolina Biological along with the medium for growing them and a manual on culturing algae:

http://www.carolina.com/catalog/search- ... SearchForm

You did not say what sort of questions you are interested in with regard to cell biology. Both freshwater and marine algae are being tested for many uses currently such as producing biodiesel, bioremediation, carbon dioxide sequestration and detection of pollutants. Here's one example: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iron_fertilization

Let us know what questions you are interested in asking about cells and we will try to steer you along into a good science project.

Sybee