Increased oxygen consumption of Ehrlich ascites tumor cells following serial cultivation in media with increased (Hypertonic) NaCl content.

Ehrlich ascites tumor cells adapted to serial cultivation in vitro in media with increased NaCl content (“high-salt”-tolerant cells) exhibit — in comparison with cells cultivated either in isotonic media or intraperitoneally in mice (in vivo) — an increased rate of cellular oxygen consumption. It is suggested that this increased respiratory rate of “high-salt”-tolerant cells reflects enhanced energy requirements associated with processes of active ion transport; and that the elevated environmental NaCl concentration may have “induced” a “step up” of the respiratory metabolism of these tumor cells.