title: Backscattered electron SEM imaging of cells and determination of the information depth.
abstract: Backscattered electron imaging of HT29 colon carcinoma cells in a scanning electron microscope was studied. Thin cell sections were placed on indium-tin-oxide-coated glass slides, which is a promising substrate material for correlative light and electron microscopy. The ultrastructure of HT29 colon carcinoma cells was imaged without poststaining by exploiting the high chemical sensitivity of backscattered electrons. Optimum primary electron energies for backscattered electron imaging were determined which depend on the section thickness. Charging effects in the vicinity of the SiO₂ nanoparticles contained in cell sections could be clarified by placing cell sections on different substrates. Moreover, a method is presented for information depth determination of backscattered electrons which is based on the imaging of subsurface nanoparticles embedded by the cells.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory for Electron Microscopy (LEM), Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Karlsruhe, Germany.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Seiter
authors.affiliation: Laboratory for Electron Microscopy (LEM), Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Karlsruhe, Germany.
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Müller
authors.affiliation: Laboratory for Electron Microscopy (LEM), Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Karlsruhe, Germany.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Blank
authors.affiliation: Department of Food Chemistry and Toxicology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Gehrke
authors.affiliation: Department of Food Chemistry and Toxicology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Marko
authors.affiliation: Laboratory for Electron Microscopy (LEM), Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Karlsruhe, Germany.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Gerthsen
mesh_terms: D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D006801:Humans; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning / Q000379:methods*; D008867:Microtomy / Q000379:methods; D053758:Nanoparticles; D012822:Silicon Dioxide
chemical_list: D012822:Silicon Dioxide
keywords: Backscattered electron imaging; HT29 cells; charging effects; indium-tin-oxide-coated glass; information depth; low electron energy; scanning electron microscopy