Capsule-supporting ring: a new device for resin embedding of glass-mounted specimens.
The goal of specimen preparation for transmission electron microscopy is to obtain high-quality ultra-thin sections with which we can correlate cellular structure to physiological function. In this study, we newly developed a capsule-supporting ring that can be useful for resin embedding of glass-mounted specimens. The present device allowed us to re-embed a semi-thin section on a microscope slide into a resin block not only for efficient ultra-thin sectioning but also for a correlative light and electron microscopy. Similar to epoxy resins for morphological observations, semi-thin sections of low-viscosity hydrophilic resins, such as Lowicryl series, can be re-embedded into the resin, which can be useful for cytochemical gold labelling. A further application of the present device improved flat embedding of cultured cells on glass cover slips for electron microscopy, preserving in situ sub-cellular structures close to their native state. We practically describe the use of capsule-supporting ring and demonstrate representative micrographs as results.
Sawaguchi
A
A
Department of Anatomy, Ultrastructural Cell Biology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Miyazaki, Kiyotake, Miyazaki, Japan. sawa@fc.miyazaki-u.ac.jp
Aoyama
F
F
Ide
S
S
Suganuma
T
T
D000818:Animals; D004853:Epoxy Resins / Q000737:chemistry*; D005753:Gastric Mucosa / Q000648:ultrastructure; D006367:HeLa Cells / Q000648:ultrastructure; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D008297:Male; D008854:Microscopy, Electron; D010295:Parietal Cells, Gastric / Q000648:ultrastructure; D016613:Plastic Embedding / Q000295:instrumentation*; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar
D004853:Epoxy Resins