Comparative analysis of the reactivity of human umbilical vein endothelial cells in organ and monolayer culture

Endothelial monolayer cell cultures have been used to study pathomechanisms under standardized in vitro conditions. These results can only be regarded as valid as long as phenomena studied in vitro are comparable to findings in situ, e.g. in organ culture. The aim of the present study was to examine the reliability and comparability between human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC) in a monolayer cell culture model and endothelial cells (EC) in organ culture, as well as in the native umbilical cord. Our results prove the reliability of HUVEC as a model for standardized investigations of EC. The differences found suggest that gradual differences in antigen expression in vitro and in situ become apparent by comparing in situ and in vitro investigations.