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A comparison of soft X‐ray contact microscopy with light and electron microscopy for the study of algal cell ultrastructure
Author(s) -
Stead A. D.,
Ford T. W.,
Myring W. J.,
Clarke D. T.
Publication year - 1988
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.1365-2818.1988.tb04579.x
Subject(s) - ultrastructure , transmission electron microscopy , microscopy , scanning electron microscope , chloroplast , electron microscope , absorbance , synchrotron radiation , algae , synchrotron , absorption (acoustics) , materials science , x ray , biophysics , optics , chemistry , botany , nanotechnology , biology , physics , biochemistry , gene
SUMMARY Images of filamentous and unicellular algae have been obtained by soft X‐ray (wavelength 2.05‐4.4 nm) contact microscopy (SXCM), using synchrotron radiation, and the images obtained compared to those obtained by scanning and transmission electron microscopy. After chemical development to leave areas corresponding to high X‐ray absorbance by the specimen the photoresists were examined by SEM. In two algae (Anabaena and Trebouxia) cytoplasmic detail, including photosynthetic lamellae, chloroplasts, nuclei and mitochondria, were identified. In a third alga (Cyanidium) the SXCM image revealed little internal detail due to the uniformly high X‐ray absorption by the cells. The successful imaging of whole cells by SXCM is discussed in relation to conventional TEM and the future possibilities for SXCM are outlined.