Skip to main content
The Journal of Cell Biology logoLink to The Journal of Cell Biology
. 1979 Oct 1;83(1):249–254. doi: 10.1083/jcb.83.1.249

High resolution scanning electron microscopy of isolated and in situ cytoskeletal elements

PMCID: PMC2110435  PMID: 574514

Abstract

Evidence is presented that cytoskeletal structures (actin filaments, intermediate filaments, and microtubules) can be resolved by scanning electron microscopy after osmium impregnation of biological material, using thiocarbohydrazide as a ligand, followed by critical-point drying. These different classes of filaments or tubules can be identified both as purified protein polymers and as structured organelles within cryofractured or detergent-extracted cells.

Full Text

The Full Text of this article is available as a PDF (704.3 KB).

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Brown S., Levinson W., Spudich J. A. Cytoskeletal elements of chick embryo fibroblasts revealed by detergent extraction. J Supramol Struct. 1976;5(2):119–130. doi: 10.1002/jss.400050203. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Buckley I. K., Porter K. R. Electron microscopy of critical point dried whole cultured cells. J Microsc. 1975 Jul;104(2):107–120. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2818.1975.tb04010.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Cooke P. A filamentous cytoskeleton in vertebrate smooth muscle fibers. J Cell Biol. 1976 Mar;68(3):539–556. doi: 10.1083/jcb.68.3.539. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Doering J. L., Fischman D. A. The in vitro cell fusion of embryonic chick muscle without DNA synthesis. Dev Biol. 1974 Feb;36(2):225–235. doi: 10.1016/0012-1606(74)90046-3. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Fellini S. A., Bennett G. S., Holtzer H. Selective binding of antibody against gizzard 10-nm filaments to different cell types in myogenic cultures. Am J Anat. 1978 Nov;153(3):451–457. doi: 10.1002/aja.1001530308. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Granger B. L., Lazarides E. The existence of an insoluble Z disc scaffold in chicken skeletal muscle. Cell. 1978 Dec;15(4):1253–1268. doi: 10.1016/0092-8674(78)90051-x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Hainfeld J. F., Steck T. L. The sub-membrane reticulum of the human erythrocyte: a scanning electron microscope study. J Supramol Struct. 1977;6(3):301–311. doi: 10.1002/jss.400060303. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Kelley R. O., Dekker R. A., Bluemink J. G. Ligand-mediated osmium binding: its application in coating biological specimens for scanning electron microscopy. J Ultrastruct Res. 1973 Nov;45(3):254–258. doi: 10.1016/s0022-5320(73)80051-6. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Kirschner R. H., Rusli M., Martin T. E. Characterization of the nuclear envelope, pore complexes, and dense lamina of mouse liver nuclei by high resolution scanning electron microscopy. J Cell Biol. 1977 Jan;72(1):118–132. doi: 10.1083/jcb.72.1.118. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Laemmli U. K. Cleavage of structural proteins during the assembly of the head of bacteriophage T4. Nature. 1970 Aug 15;227(5259):680–685. doi: 10.1038/227680a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Lazarides E. The distribution of desmin (100 A) filaments in primary cultures of embryonic chick cardiac cells. Exp Cell Res. 1978 Mar 15;112(2):265–273. doi: 10.1016/0014-4827(78)90209-4. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Lin S., Lamvik M. K. High resolution scanning electron microscopy at the subcellular level. J Microsc. 1975 Mar;103(2):249–257. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2818.1975.tb03900.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Malick L. E., Wilson R. B. Modified thiocarbohydrazide procedure for scanning electron microscopy: routine use for normal, pathological, or experimental tissues. Stain Technol. 1975 Jul;50(4):265–269. doi: 10.3109/10520297509117069. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Shelanski M. L., Gaskin F., Cantor C. R. Microtubule assembly in the absence of added nucleotides. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1973 Mar;70(3):765–768. doi: 10.1073/pnas.70.3.765. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Small J. V., Sobieszek A. Studies on the function and composition of the 10-NM(100-A) filaments of vertebrate smooth muscle. J Cell Sci. 1977 Feb;23:243–268. doi: 10.1242/jcs.23.1.243. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Starger J. M., Brown W. E., Goldman A. E., Goldman R. D. Biochemical and immunological analysis of rapidly purified 10-nm filaments from baby hamster kidney (BHK-21) cells. J Cell Biol. 1978 Jul;78(1):93–109. doi: 10.1083/jcb.78.1.93. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. Webster R. E., Henderson D., Osborn M., Weber K. Three-dimensional electron microscopical visualization of the cytoskeleton of animal cells: immunoferritin identification of actin- and tubulin-containing structures. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1978 Nov;75(11):5511–5515. doi: 10.1073/pnas.75.11.5511. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  18. Webster R. E., Osborn M., Weber K. Visualization of the same PtK2 cytoskeletons by both immunofluorescence and low power electron microscopy. Exp Cell Res. 1978 Nov;117(1):47–61. doi: 10.1016/0014-4827(78)90426-3. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  19. Wolosewick J. J., Porter K. R. Stereo high-voltage electron microscopy of whole cells of the human diploid line, WI-38. Am J Anat. 1976 Nov;147(3):303–323. doi: 10.1002/aja.1001470305. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from The Journal of Cell Biology are provided here courtesy of The Rockefeller University Press

RESOURCES