Histochemistry of food tissue by colour scanning electron microscopy.
A low-vacuum scanning electron microscope (SEM) allows microscopy of insulating specimens without metal coating, and so preserves the intact colour information on the specimen surface. We have attempted a new approach to characterize constituent distribution of food tissues by a histochemical method utilizing a colour SEM with an optical microscope and the low-vacuum SEM through digital image processing. To observe food tissues such as brown rice and adzuki bean, a colour SEM image of the specimen that has been stained by a modified method used in optical microscope histochemistry has proved to provide information of both the microscopic structure and constituent distribution on the specimen surface.
Yamada
M
M
Hitachi Science systems Co., Ltd, Ibaraki, Japan. yamada_hk@cm.naka.hitachi.co.jp
Nishimura
M
M
Suzuki
T
T
Kawamata
S
S
Oho
E
E
Kimura
T
T
D007887:Fabaceae / Q000648:ultrastructure; D005502:Food; D008460:Meat; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning / Q000379:methods*; D012275:Oryza / Q000648:ultrastructure; D010946:Plants, Medicinal; D012639:Seeds / Q000648:ultrastructure