Improved preservation of intramitochondrial granules in rat-incisor odontoblasts by rapid-freezing and freeze-substitution fixation.
Odontoblasts fixed by rapid-freezing and freeze-substitution, compared to cells fixed with aldehyde, exhibited a larger number of microfilaments, a granular material inside the rough endoplasmic reticulum, many electron-dense aggregates in cytoplasmic vesicles and numerous intramitochondrial granules. Although these granules were located in odontoblasts facing a well-mineralized layer of dentine, this did not support the possible existence of a transfer pathway for intracellular calcium which plays some part in mineralization processes.
D000818:Animals; D005629:Frozen Sections; D006652:Histological Techniques; D007180:Incisor; D008854:Microscopy, Electron; D008928:Mitochondria / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D009804:Odontoblasts / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains; D013367:Submitochondrial Particles / Q000648:ultrastructure*