Differences in the Effect of Individual Human Sera on Cell Cultures2

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Abstract
Studies relating to the differences observed in cell cultures in fresh human sera are reviewed. Particular attention was given the observations that sera from some individuals make cells grow in dense clumps only loosely attached to the glass surface and that sera from other individuals cause cells to grow firmly attached in a mosaic structure in monolayers. Properties of the growth surface are important in tests of the growth behavior of different human sera individual sera cannot be differentiated with growth behavior tests by use of the plastic surfaces investigated to date. Differences in the pretreatment of the glass also affect the results. The attachment technique showed that sera with a so-called “clumping effect” display lower cell-attachment rates on a glass surface. A clumping serum can be deprived of its clumping activity by application of the glass powder adsorption technique. Sera can be differentiated by time-lapse cinematography, nuclear counts, and chromosomal studies. In clumping serum, nuclear counts are lower and lower chromosome numbers predominate. Of 719 sera tested, 60 (8.3%) belonged to the group with strong clumping activity and 48 (6.7%) to the group with no clumping activity. Sera from women in early pregnancy showed no clumping activity nor did cord sera. The distribution of clumping and nonclumping sera among cancer patients differed from that observed among healthy controls. The nature of the factors responsible for the observed individual differences is discussed.