Figure 2. AFM images of the apical surface of unfixed mouse urothelium mounted on a nitrocellulose membrane.
(A) A rather flat area where numerous concave urothelial plaques is visible. In general the folds on the surface and the softness of the tissue were preventing us from obtaining images of this quality. (B) Typical image of the apical surface, (C) Image obtained on the same sample after adding glutaraldehyde to a final concentration of 3%. The mechanical stability has been increased by the fixation and the plaques are clearly visible, even for such an extremely folded region. (D) High magnification of the area highlighted in (C), contrast enhancement reveals the contour of the plaques (arrowheads).
