Immortalized Mouse Distal Caput Epididymal Epithelial Cell Line (DC2)

The epididymal epithelium plays an important role in male fertility by supporting sperm motility, maturation and viability. Owing to the changing microenvironment created by different sections of the epididymis, the spermatozoa matures as they passage through the convoluted tubule.

DC2 is a conditionally immortalized mouse epididymal epithelial cell line isolated from the distal caput of the mouse harbouring a temperature-sensitive simian virus 40 large T antigen. The functional expression of the SV40 large T antigen is induced by culturing the cells in vitro at permissive temperature (33°C). At a non-permissive temperature (37°C-39°C), the cells cease to proliferate. DC2 expresses androgen receptor as well as markers of the murine epididymal epithelium, PEB-like protein (i.e. phosphatidylethanolamine binding protein), E-RABP (i.e. epididymal retinoic acid-binding protein), and EP17 (i.e. epididymal protein of 17 kd). Together with the Immortalized Mouse Proximal Caput Epididymal Epithelial Cell Line (PC1), these cells are useful in studying the regulation of tissue-specific gene expression and epididymal specific proteins in the epididymis. This cell line may contain some fibroblast cells.