High-voltage electron microscopy of patch-clamped membranes

1987 ◽  
Vol 45 ◽  
pp. 582-583
Author(s):  
F. Sachs ◽  
M. J. Song
Keyword(s):  
Electron Microscopy ◽  
Cell Membrane ◽  
Patch Clamp ◽  
High Voltage Electron Microscopy ◽  
Small Patch ◽  
Cellular Electrophysiology ◽  
Voltage Electron ◽  
Electron Microscopes ◽  
Patch Technique ◽  
Membrane Patch

Cellular electrophysiology has been revolutionized by the introduction of patch clamp techniques. The patch clamp records current from a small patch of the cell membrane which has been sucked into a glass pipette. The membrane patch, a few micons in diameter, is attached to the glass by a seal which is electrically, diffusionally and mechanically tight. Because of the tight electrical seal, the noise level is low enough to record the activity of single ion channels over a time scale extending from 10μs to days. However, although the patch technique is over ten years old, the patch structure is unknown. The patch is inside a glass pipette where it has been impossible to see with standard electron microscopes. We show here that at 1 Mev the glass pipette is transparent and the membrane within can be seen with a resolution of about 30 A.

High-voltage Electron Microscopy and 3-D reconstruction of human hair fiber ultrastructure

1989 ◽  
Vol 47 ◽  
pp. 116-117
Author(s):  
L. Rudy ◽  
R. Sneath ◽  
M. Song
Keyword(s):  
Electron Microscopy ◽  
Cell Membrane ◽  
High Voltage ◽  
Human Hair ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
High Voltage Electron Microscopy ◽  
Membrane Complex ◽  
Voltage Electron ◽  
High Voltage Electron ◽  
Cell Membrane Complex

The basic morphology of the non-keratinous regions of human hair fibers was studied using both conventional and high voltage electron microscopy. The non-keratinous regions of hair include the endocuticle, the cell membrane complex, and the nuclear remnants of the cortex. By characterizing these regions more clearly, the mechanisms by which external influences affect the hair can be understood. The nuclear remnants are surrounded by a cell membrane complex. Since thin sectioning often causes artifacts in these fragile structures, a three-dimensional reconstruction using serial, semi-thick sections was completed to reveal their morphological nature.Human hair fibers collected from a female subject, had not been treated with any chemically active processes. One centimeter samples were collected near the scalp region of the back of the head. The fibers were embedded in Epon-812. Serial, semi-thick sections, 0.25u thick, were sectioned and collected on copper slot, formvar-coated grids. Post-staining was completed with uranyl acetate and lead citrate. Sections were examined in an AEl EM7 Mk 1.2MV HVEM at an accelerating voltage of 1.0 MV.

High Voltage Electron Microscopy in Biology

1970 ◽  
Vol 28 ◽  
pp. 12-13
Author(s):  
Hans Ris
Keyword(s):  
Electron Microscopy ◽  
Heavy Metal ◽  
Electron Microscope ◽  
High Voltage ◽  
Cell Structure ◽  
High Voltage Electron Microscopy ◽  
Voltage Electron ◽  
Sectioning Method ◽  
High Voltage Electron ◽  
Electron Microscopes

Conventional electron microscopes operate with accelerating voltages up to 100kV. Because of the scattering of electrons by atoms of the specimen an image with reasonable resolution can only be obtained with very thin specimens. The study of cell structure with the electron microscope became possible only with the introduction of ultramicrotomes which produce sections of plastic-embedded tissues down to about 100A in thickness. It has long been known that useful images could be obtained with much thicker materials at higher accelerating voltages (cf. refs. 1 and 2) and in the early sixties electron microscopes operating at voltages of up to one million Volts were built in Japan and in France. Their capabilities were soon demonstrated in metallurgy but they were ignored until recently by biologists. For one, biologists were busy exploiting the sectioning method and in addition may have been deterred by the knowledge that scattering contrast rapidly decreases at higher accelerating voltage. Only recently has it been realized that excellent contrast is obtained at 500 and 1000kV with the usual heavy metal stains (3,4). High voltage microscopes are now manufactured commercially in England (AEI), France (GESPA) and Japan (Hitachi, Jeol) and should soon be more widely accessible.

scholarly journals High Voltage Microscopy in Paleontological Studies – Graptolites

1970 ◽  
Vol 28 ◽  
pp. 492-493
Author(s):  
W. B. N. Berry ◽  
R. S. Takagi ◽  
G. Thomas ◽  
D. J. Jurica
Keyword(s):  
Electron Microscopy ◽  
High Voltage ◽  
The Other ◽  
Transmission Power ◽  
High Voltage Electron Microscopy ◽  
Voltage Electron ◽  
Transmission Electron ◽  
Thin Sectioning ◽  
Electron Microscopes ◽  
Biological Methods

Transmission electron microscopy has seldom been used in studies of fossils, and to date, no electron diffraction work has been reported. Because of the limited transmission power of the 100 kV electron microscopes (<lμ), the techniques which have been used to prepare specimens have followed standard biological methods, including ultra-thin sectioning and staining. High voltage electron microscopy on the other hand allows examination of considerably thicker specimens (up to 5μ at 500 kV) and is particularly useful in studying fossils e.g. it is often not necessary to section pieces of the fossil. Minimal preparation is advantageous because materials that have been interred in rocks of the earth's crust for millions of years are commonly brittle and distort or break while being sectioned with the microtome.

High Voltage Electron Microscopy of Ion-Milled Dental Enamel

1974 ◽  
Vol 32 ◽  
pp. 60-61
Author(s):  
L. D. Ackerman ◽  
S. H. Y. Wei
Keyword(s):  
Electron Microscopy ◽  
High Voltage ◽  
Third Molar ◽  
Polarized Light ◽  
Dental Enamel ◽  
Longitudinal Section ◽  
Ion Milling ◽  
High Voltage Electron Microscopy ◽  
Voltage Electron ◽  
High Voltage Electron

Mature human dental enamel has presented investigators with several difficulties in ultramicrotomy of specimens for electron microscopy due to its high degree of mineralization. This study explores the possibility of combining ion-milling and high voltage electron microscopy as a means of circumventing the problems of ultramicrotomy.A longitudinal section of an extracted human third molar was ground to a thickness of about 30 um and polarized light micrographs were taken. The specimen was attached to a single hole grid and thinned by argon-ion bombardment at 15° incidence while rotating at 15 rpm. The beam current in each of two guns was 50 μA with an accelerating voltage of 4 kV. A 20 nm carbon coating was evaporated onto the specimen to prevent an electron charge from building up during electron microscopy.

Three-Dimensional Visualization of the T-System of Frog Muscle Using High Voltage Electron Microscopy and a Lanthanum Stain

1977 ◽  
Vol 35 ◽  
pp. 570-571 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lee D. Peachey ◽  
Clara Franzini-Armstrong
Keyword(s):  
Electron Microscopy ◽  
High Voltage ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Biological Tissues ◽  
High Voltage Electron Microscopy ◽  
Transverse Tubular System ◽  
Peroxidase Reaction ◽  
Voltage Electron ◽  
High Voltage Electron ◽  
T System

The effective study of biological tissues in thick slices of embedded material by high voltage electron microscopy (HVEM) requires highly selective staining of those structures to be visualized so that they are not hidden or obscured by other structures in the image. A tilt pair of micrographs with subsequent stereoscopic viewing can be an important aid in three-dimensional visualization of these images, once an appropriate stain has been found. The peroxidase reaction has been used for this purpose in visualizing the T-system (transverse tubular system) of frog skeletal muscle by HVEM (1). We have found infiltration with lanthanum hydroxide to be particularly useful for three-dimensional visualization of certain aspects of the structure of the T- system in skeletal muscles of the frog. Specifically, lanthanum more completely fills the lumen of the tubules and is denser than the peroxidase reaction product.

Radiation-Induced Precipitation at Thin Foil Surfaces in Ni-Be Alloys

1982 ◽  
Vol 40 ◽  
pp. 598-599
Author(s):  
T. Mukai ◽  
T. E. Mitchell
Keyword(s):  
Electron Microscopy ◽  
High Voltage ◽  
Electron Irradiation ◽  
High Vacuum ◽  
Thin Foil ◽  
Homogeneous Precipitation ◽  
High Voltage Electron Microscopy ◽  
Voltage Electron ◽  
High Voltage Electron ◽  
Radiation Induced

Radiation-induced homogeneous precipitation in Ni-Be alloys was recently observed by high voltage electron microscopy. A coupling of interstitial flux with solute Be atoms is responsible for the precipitation. The present investigation further shows that precipitation is also induced at thin foil surfaces by electron irradiation under a high vacuum.

An Environmental Wet Cell For High Voltage Electron Microscopy

1973 ◽  
Vol 31 ◽  
pp. 18-19
Author(s):  
N.J. Tighe ◽  
H.M. Flower ◽  
P.R. Swann
Keyword(s):  
Electron Microscopy ◽  
High Temperature ◽  
Image Quality ◽  
Inelastic Scattering ◽  
High Voltage ◽  
High Voltage Electron Microscopy ◽  
Voltage Electron ◽  
Environmental Cell ◽  
Water Saturated ◽  
High Temperature Gas

A differentially pumped environmental cell has been developed for use in the AEI EM7 million volt microscope. In the initial version the column of gas traversed by the beam was 5.5mm. This permited inclusion of a tilting hot stage in the cell for investigating high temperature gas-specimen reactions. In order to examine specimens in the wet state it was found that a pressure of approximately 400 torr of water saturated helium was needed around the specimen to prevent dehydration. Inelastic scattering by the water resulted in a sharp loss of image quality. Therefore a modified cell with an ‘airgap’ of only 1.5mm has been constructed. The shorter electron path through the gas permits examination of specimens at the necessary pressure of moist helium; the specimen can still be tilted about the side entry rod axis by ±7°C to obtain stereopairs.

High-voltage electron microscopy of maxillary gland of spirochete-infected brine shrimp: lesion of efferent tubule

1988 ◽  
Vol 46 ◽  
pp. 362-363
Author(s):  
G. E. Tyson ◽  
M. J. Song
Keyword(s):  
Electron Microscopy ◽  
High Voltage ◽  
Brine Shrimp ◽  
Natural Populations ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Dimensional Structure ◽  
High Voltage Electron Microscopy ◽  
Voltage Electron ◽  
High Voltage Electron ◽  
Infected Adult

Natural populations of the brine shrimp, Artemia, may possess spirochete- infected animals in low numbers. The ultrastructure of Artemia's spirochete has been described by conventional transmission electron microscopy. In infected shrimp, spirochetal cells were abundant in the blood and also occurred intra- and extracellularly in the three organs examined, i.e. the maxillary gland (segmental excretory organ), the integument, and certain muscles The efferent-tubule region of the maxillary gland possessed a distinctive lesion comprised of a group of spirochetes, together with numerous small vesicles, situated in a cave-like indentation of the base of the tubule epithelium. in some instances the basal lamina at a lesion site was clearly discontinuous. High-voltage electron microscopy has now been used to study lesions of the efferent tubule, with the aim of understanding better their three-dimensional structure.Tissue from one maxillary gland of an infected, adult, female brine shrimp was used for HVEM study.

On the High Voltage Electron Microscopy (1 MeV) of Biological Thick Sections

1972 ◽  
Vol 30 ◽  
pp. 464-465
Author(s):  
William H. Massover
Keyword(s):  
Electron Microscopy ◽  
High Voltage ◽  
Present Report ◽  
Biological Tissues ◽  
Specimen Preparation ◽  
Technical Problems ◽  
High Voltage Electron Microscopy ◽  
Thin Sections ◽  
Voltage Electron ◽  
High Voltage Electron

Stereoscopic examination of thick sections of fixed and embedded biological tissues by high voltage electron microscopy has been shown to allow direct visualization of three-dimensional fine structure. The present report will consider the occurrence of some new technical problems in specimen preparation and Image interpretation that are not common during lower voltage studies of thin sections.Thick Sectioning and Tissue Coloration - Epon sections of 0.5 μm or more that are cut with glass knives do not have a uniform thickness as Judged by their interference colors; these colors change with time during their flotation on the knife bath, and again when drying onto the specimen support. Quoted thicknesses thus must be considered only as rough estimates unless measured in specific regions by other methods. Chloroform vapors do not always result in good spreading of thick sections; however, they will spread spontaneously to large degrees after resting on the flotation bath for several minutes. Ribbons of thick sections have been almost impossible to obtain.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document