MEMBRANE LIPID DISTRIBUTION REVEALED BY FREEZE FRACTURE REPLICA AND FREEZE-SUBSTITUTION LABELING

摘要

Lipid cytochemistry has not yet advanced very far at electron microscopic level by the fact that lipids are not immobilized by chemical fixation and extracted by organic solvents routinely used in dehydration and embedding for electron microscopy. SDS-digested freeze-fracture replica labeling technique allows reliable visualization of proteins and lipids at electron microscopic resolution. Here, we examined the suitability of cryoimmobilization using fast-freezing and freeze-substitution for structural preservation and electron microscopic cytochemistry of membrane lipids.