The Journal of investigative dermatology
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J. Invest. Dermatol. · May 1988
Characterization and practical benefits of keratinocytes cultured in strontium-containing serum-free medium.
Strontium (Sr2+) can substitute for Ca2+ and stimulate a variety of functions of numerous types of cells. The purpose of this study was to investigate the details of the biologic effects of Sr2+ on human keratinocyte growth, cell cycle, viability, and differentiation and to compare these effects with Sr2+ effects on cultured skin melanocytes. Cultured keratinocytes stimulated with 1.0-3.0 mM Sr2+ showed higher viability and almost a twofold increase in cell number compared with those grown in a standard calcium concentration. ⋯ A 2 mM concentration of Sr2+ produced an increase in low-density keratinocytes separated by a Percoll gradient. In addition, increased expression of human fibronectin was observed in the cytoplasm and on cell membranes of keratinocytes cultured in Sr2+. Sr2+ can be of practical benefit in the culture of human keratinocytes in serum-free medium, increasing the viability and proliferative rate and producing a more uniform population of basaloid cells with increased expression of cell surface fibronectin.