BEWO Cells
General information
Description | BeWo cells, a cell line derived from malignant gestational choriocarcinoma of the fetal male placenta, have become a widely used in vitro model for studying the placenta. The cell-cell fusion during the human trophoblast syncytialization phase during placental development is one of the most significant yet least understood events. Due to the difficulty of studying this process in a placenta in vivo, BeWo cells are utilized as a cell culture model to simulate in vivo syncytialization of the placental villous trophoblast. These cells exhibit an epithelial-like phenotype and are adherent. The b30 subclone of BeWo cells is particularly useful for studying nutrient uptake and transport due to its dense growth on permeable membranes. CK 7 and E-cadherin are molecular markers that are expressed by BeWo cells. VE-cadherin is found in BeWo cells and is enhanced upon treatment with forskolin. The cells also express keratin and are positive for G6PD, B isoenzyme. The karyotype of BeWo cells is modal number = 86, with a range of 71 to 178, and the stemline number is hypotetraploid. The karyotype is relatively stable within the stemline number. BeWo cells secrete various hormones, including human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG), human chorionic somatomammotropin (placental lactogen), and steroid hormones as estrone, estriol, and estradiol. However, the levels of ?-hCG and estradiol secreted by BeWo cells are lower than those secreted by other choriocarcinoma-derived cell lines such as JEG-3. Upon Forskolin treatment, the secretion of ?-hCG in BeWo cells increases to a level similar to that observed in the other choriocarcinoma-derived cell lines. Furthermore, Forskolin treatment also increases the progesterone levels secreted by BeWo cells. In summary, BeWo cells are a widely used in vitro model for studying placental development and the human trophoblast syncytialization process. They exhibit an epithelial-like phenotype, express various molecular markers, and secrete multiple hormones, including hCG, placental lactogen, and steroid hormones. Overall, BeWo cells are a valuable tool for investigating the complex processes involved in placental development. |
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Organism | Human |
Tissue | Placenta |
Disease | Choriocarcinoma |
Metastatic site | Brain |
Synonyms | BeWo, Be Wo, Be-Wo |
Characteristics
Age | Fetus |
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Gender | Male |
Morphology | Epithelial-like |
Growth properties | Adherent |
Identifiers / Biosafety / Citation
Citation | BEWO (Cytion catalog number 300123) |
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Biosafety level | 1 |
Expression / Mutation
Isoenzymes | G6PD, B |
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Virus susceptibility | poliovirus 3, vesicular stomatitis (Indiana) |
Reverse transcriptase | negative |
Products | progesterone, human chorionic somatomammotropin (placental lactogen), estrogen, estrone, estriol, estradiol, keratin |
Handling
Culture Medium | Ham's F12K Medium, w: 2.0 mM L-Glutamine, w: 2.0 mM Sodium pyruvate, w: 2.5 g/L NaHCO3 (Cytion article number 820608a) |
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Medium supplements | Supplement the medium with 10% FBS |
Passaging solution | Accutase |
Subculturing | Remove the old medium from the adherent cells and wash them with PBS that lacks calcium and magnesium. For T25 flasks, use 3-5 ml of PBS, and for T75 flasks, use 5-10 ml. Then, cover the cells completely with Accutase, using 1-2 ml for T25 flasks and 2.5 ml for T75 flasks. Let the cells incubate at room temperature for 8-10 minutes to detach them. After incubation, gently mix the cells with 10 ml of medium to resuspend them, then centrifuge at 300xg for 3 minutes. Discard the supernatant, resuspend the cells in fresh medium, and transfer them into new flasks that already contain fresh medium. |
Seeding density | A seeding density of 1 x 10^4 cells/cm^2 is recommended. |
Fluid renewal | 2 to 3 times per week |
Freezing recovery | After thawing, plate the cells at 5 x 10^4 cells/cm^2 and allow the cells to recover from the freezing process and to adhere for at least 24 hours. |
Freeze medium | CM-1 (Cytion catalog number 800100) or CM-ACF (Cytion catalog number 806100) |
Handling of cryopreserved cultures |
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Quality control / Genetic profile / HLA
Sterility | Mycoplasma contamination is excluded using both PCR-based assays and luminescence-based mycoplasma detection methods. To ensure there is no bacterial, fungal, or yeast contamination, cell cultures are subjected to daily visual inspections. |
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STR profile |
Amelogenin: x,y
CSF1PO: 11,12
D13S317: 9, 11
D16S539: 13, 14
D5S818: 10, 11
D7S820: 10, 12
TH01: 9, 9.3
TPOX: 8
vWA: 16
D3S1358: 15
D21S11: 30
D18S51: 14, 16
Penta E: 8, 12
Penta D: 9, 12
D8S1179: 12
FGA: 22, 23, 24
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HLA alleles |
A*: 01:01:01, 11:01:01
B*: 08:13, 35:01:01
C*: 04:01:01, 07:01:01
DRB1*: 01:03:01, 03:01:01
DQA1*: 01:01:01, 05:01:01
DQB1*: 02:01:01, 05:01:01
DPB1*: 01:01:01, 04:01:01
E: 01:01:01
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