Immortalization of mouse intestinal epithelial cells by the SV40-large T gene. Phenotypic and immune characterization of the MODE-K cell line.

Intestinal epithelial cells from the mouse small intestine were immortalized by SV40 large T gene transfer through a murine ecotropic virus. The resulting cell lines expressed the SV40 large T mRNA and exhibited morphological and phenotypic characteristics of normal enterocytes, including intercellular junctions, and expression of cytokeratin, villin, poly-Ig receptor (i.e.