Dear All, Jonni Moore's going to be getting this information twice (apologies, Jonni!). I decided that others might benefit from the information. The American Type Culture Collection (ATCC) is a repository for a vast number of cell lines, and their web site is a great reference tool. ATCC also authenticates cell lines, which are often prone to cross-contamination. >From the ATCC website: "The U-937 cell line was derived by Sundstrom and Nilsson in 1974 from malignant cells obtained from the pleural effusion of a patient with histiocytic lymphoma. Studies since 1979 have shown that U-937 cells can be induced to terminal monocytic differentiation by supernatants from human mixed lymphocyte cultures, phorbol esters, vitamin D3, gamma interferon, tumor necrosis factor (TNF) and, retinoic acid. The cells are negative for immunoglobulin production and Epstein-Barr virus expression. The cells express the Fas antigen, and are sensitive to TNF and anti-Fas antibodies. In 1994, PCR and cytogenetic analyses showed that a number of stocks of U-937 were contaminated with the human myeloid leukemia cell line, K-562. In the earliest stocks available, the level of contamination was 0.6%. [RF51327] Distribution was discontinued in March 1994, except if required for patent purposes. Anyone who wishes to receive a sample of this original material should contact the Head of the ATCC Patent Depository. A stock of CRL-1593 found to be free of K-562 was propagated continuously for 8 weeks and tested weekly by PCR. Distribution and seed stocks give DNA profiles characteristic of U-937 only. Such preparations are now offered as authentic U-937 (ATCC CRL-1593.2) and are believed to be free of second subpopulations. Receptors Expressed: complement (C3)" More info can be found at http://www.atcc.org; choose "Cell Lines and Hybridomas" and search for "U-937". It's important to put that dash in there! Best regards, Linda Weaver
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