Madin-Darby ovine kidney cells and other epithelial lines demonstrate strong contact inhibition of migration in culture. Early in the digital video the broad lamellipodia along the free margins of a round MDOK cell in the center of the field of view can be seen undergoing cycles of extension and contraction. The activity of the flattened sheets of membrane-enclosed cytoplasm is known as ruffling. Later, when the lamellipodia come into contact with nearby cells, the ruffling of the lamellipodia ceases in the areas of overlap. Cell migration primarily depends upon lamellipodial action and without it, cells tend to remain relatively stable unless they are pulled along by the joint effort of other cells to which they are connected.

The proclivity of MDOK cells to adhere to one another is related to the primary function of epithelial cells in the body. Epithelial cells naturally form specialized junctions with neighboring cells in vivo to create epithelial sheets. The sheets, which cover most internal and external surfaces of the body and its organs, serve primarily as barriers against the diffusion of molecules. Consequently, the continuity of the sheets is a crucial factor. In culture, MDOK cells first tend to form small colonies that migrate in groups, but later sheets similar to the epithelial sheets found in the body often develop.

Several nuclei can be observed in the previously mentioned centrally located epithelial cell. Nucleoli are discernable inside of the organelles and numerous mitochondria, which have a granular appearance in the video, are concentrated in the cytoplasm around the nuclei. Several large membrane-enclosed sacs called vacuoles are also scattered throughout the cell. Vacuoles are primarily utilized as a means of temporary storage and transport in animal cells. The transitory nature of vacuoles is demonstrated when several of the sacs are broken down by the MDOK cell and others quickly materialize, only to be dissolved almost as rapidly.