title: Disclosure in 3D of slit-membrane as well as -strands, and en-face basal lamina in situ of renal glomerulus of normal rats in embedment-free section transmission electron microscopy.
abstract: With higher contrast and transparency due to the absence of epon and stereo-viewing effect due to thicker sections than conventional electron microscopy as methodological advantages, the renal glomerular slits were re-examined in embedment-free section electron microscopy. In addition to clear demonstration of strands bridging the slits in forms of ladders with highly irregular intervals and various extension-directions and length, this study disclosed clearly for the first time in the "section" TEM thin sheets which partially spanned the slit together with the strand-ladders. No strands were found to align in forms of typical zippers in normal kidney. Furthermore, en-face ultrastructure of the basal lamina in situ was clearly demonstrated in superimposed sites of the endothelial fenestrae with the slits.
authors.affiliation: Division of Histology, Department of Rehabilitation, Faculty of Medical Science and Welfare, Tohoku Gakuen University, Sendai, Japan. hkondo@rehab.tbgu.ac.jp
authors.forename: Hisatake
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kondo
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001485:Basement Membrane / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D005260:Female; D007678:Kidney Glomerulus / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D008297:Male; D046529:Microscopy, Electron, Transmission; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D040681:Structural Homology, Protein