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Fracturing of melamine‐embedded cells and tissues: a new technique for studying cell membranes
Author(s) -
Westphal Christel,
Frösch Dieter
Publication year - 1985
Publication title -
journal of microscopy
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.569
H-Index - 111
eISSN - 1365-2818
pISSN - 0022-2720
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-2818.1985.tb02556.x
Subject(s) - membrane , scanning electron microscope , materials science , fracture (geology) , melamine , composite material , biophysics , chemistry , biology , biochemistry
SUMMARY A new technique is presented for studying cell membranes by scanning electron microscopy. It is based on the observation that cells and tissues, embedded in a water‐compatible melamine resin, are as hard as glass and consequently can be fractured with ease. Fracture faces so exposed are either sputter‐coated for studying the surface topography or re‐embedded for thin‐sectioning, or both. Scanning electron microscopy shows that the fracture faces of a variety of tissues reveal cell membranes and associated structures with remarkable detail. Re‐embedding and thin‐sectioning of fractured frog retina, mycoplasma and red blood cells indicate that membranes become divided into their exo‐ and protoplasmic leaflets during fracturing. In this respect, the results reported here must be compared with conventional freeze‐fracture techniques.