Ultrastructural Cytochemistry of Some Oxidative Enzymes
The membrane-bound enzymes of the succinic oxidase chain of electron transport on the cristae of mitochondria have been the target of ultrastructural cytochemical research for a number of years. Methods for succinic dehydrogenase have been improved by the continuous design and synthesis of better tetrazolium salts. The most recent is BSPT, which is not osmiophilic, but yields an osmiophilic, lipophobic, insoluble formazan. The terminal triplet of the chain of electron transport or cytochrome oxidase, consisting of cytochrome c, a and a3 has been demonstrated very well via cytochrome c with diaminobenzidine (DAB). The localization of these two reaction products specifically on the outer surface of the inner mitochondrial membrane, lends some support to speculation concerning the mechanism of transfer of oxidative energy for ATP synthesis.