Rat Keratocytes (RK)

Overview

Rat Keratocytes (RK) is a cell model used for research applications where physiologically relevant identity and donor background support interpretation of experimental readouts. Rat Keratocytes derived from Cornea within the Nervous system.

The keratocytes, or corneal fibroblasts, are highly specialized cells that are sandwiched between orthogonally arranged layers of collagen lamellae in the corneal stroma. They play a key role in maintaining the structure and transparency of the cornea, as they are the source of stromal collagen and proglycans. They also play important roles in corneal wound healing and tissue repair, and are known to undergo phenotypic transformations in wounds due to the influence of growth factors and cytokines [1]. Under normal conditions, the keratocytes in the adult cornea are relatively quiescent cells. In the event of corneal injury or trauma, however, the keratocytes differentiate into active, synthesizing cells and rapidly replace damaged stromal matrix. Cultured human keratocytes express functional IL-4Rs [2] and IL-17R [3] on the cell surface, suggesting that these cells may contribute to the role of IL-4 and IL-17 as mediators of allergic reactions in the cornea. Changes in gene expression were observed in keratocytes after interleukin-1 treatment, which provides important insight into gene expression and suggests novel therapeutic targets for the control of corneal inflammation. iXCells Biotechnologies provides high quality Rat Keratocytes (RK), which are isolated from neonate day 2 rat cornea and cryopreserved at P1, with >0.5 million cells in each vial. RK are characterized by fibroblast morphology. They are negative for HIV-1, HBV, HCV, mycoplasma, bacteria, yeast, and fungi and can further expand for 5 population doublings in Fibroblast Growth Medium (Cat# MD-0011) under the condition suggested by iXCells Biotechnologies.

Key elements and design rationale

• Cell identity: Keratocytes (Primary Cells, Custom Cells)
• Source context: Cornea; Nervous
• Donor background: Age: Adult
• Biosafety level: BSL-1 (follow your institution’s biosafety program and local regulations)

Product-specific elements (such as tissue source, donor background, and cell classification) help frame how results should be interpreted across assays and experimental conditions.

Biological background

Cells originating from the Nervous system are commonly studied to understand tissue-specific physiology, signaling, and responses to perturbations in controlled in vitro settings.

Across primary and specialty cell models, experimental outcomes can be influenced by donor heterogeneity, passage history, confluence, and media composition. For interpretation, it is common to validate key markers or functional phenotypes in the user’s assay context and to document culture variables consistently.

Research relevance and current trends

• Increasing use of primary and specialty cells to improve translational relevance for target biology and phenotypic screening.
• Adoption of 3D culture formats and co-culture systems to better capture tissue microenvironments and cell–cell interactions.
• Integration of functional readouts with single-cell and multi-omics profiling to connect phenotype with molecular state.
• Growth of human-relevant neural models (including glial components) to study circuit- and inflammation-linked phenotypes.

Common research applications

• Profile identity markers by flow cytometry or immunostaining in cultured cells
• Quantify neurite outgrowth and synaptic marker profiles in neural cultures
• Quantify functional responses to defined stimuli relevant to the model system
• Compare baseline phenotype across donors/conditions using gene expression profiling
• Measure neuroinflammatory signaling in neuron–glia or microglia-enriched models

Interpretation typically focuses on how a perturbation (e.g., cytokine exposure, metabolic stress, genetic manipulation, or compound treatment) shifts marker profiles or functional readouts relative to an appropriate control matched for donor and culture variables.

Notes for experimental interpretation

• Donor-to-donor heterogeneity can influence baseline phenotype and treatment response; include biological replicates when feasible.
• Passage number, confluence, and media composition can shift gene expression and functional readouts; track and report these variables consistently.
• Contamination control (including routine mycoplasma monitoring) supports reproducibility in downstream assays.
• Use appropriate negative/positive controls for the readout (e.g., unstimulated controls, pathway agonists/antagonists) to contextualize observed changes.

SKU:BHC18500299

Customization & Add-ons: Can't find the cell line you need—or require a custom cell-based solution for your project? We can help you source the best match or support custom cell line services for diverse research needs, including cell line sourcing and selection (species, tissue, and disease model matching), stable cell line engineering (overexpression, knockdown, or knockout via CRISPR/Cas9, shRNA, or sgRNA), reporter gene integration (GFP, RFP, luciferase, and other fluorescent or bioluminescent constructs), genome editing and knockin (point mutations, tagged endogenous proteins, conditional alleles), inducible expression systems (Tet-On/Off and other regulatable constructs), drug resistance marker selection (puromycin, G418, hygromycin, and others), custom growth and media optimisation for specific assay requirements, scale-up production for high-throughput screening campaigns, and authentication and QC services (STR profiling, mycoplasma testing, viability assessment). Click Talk to a Scientist to submit a request, email us at support@biohippo.com, or explore our Research Services for additional support—our team will follow up with feasibility details and next steps.