Nuestro trabajo en la formación del corazón del tubo fue apoyada por la National Science Foundation Grant (ID Premio 0.744.165) para SGK

<ol><li> Recién preparar 2 ml de una solución fijadora contiene 12,5% de glutaraldehído en tampón cacodilato 50 mM (pH 7,4) en un vial de centelleo de 20 ml de vidrio. Añadir 8 ml de n-heptano y agitar vigorosamente. Permitir a las dos fases se separen. Retire la fase superior que contiene n-heptano saturado con glutaraldehído, el lugar en un vial de centelleo limpio y dejar de lado. Esta será la solución fijadora. </li><li> Recoger embriones 00-20 horas usando una cámara de recogida de embriones, que es una pequeña cesta con una inserción de malla extraíble. Quitar la membrana externa del corion por inmersión de embriones en una solución de lejía al 50% durante 2-3 minutos, o hasta que los embriones flotan en la superficie de la lejía. Enjuague bien con embriones ddH20 y mancha en una toalla de papel. </li><li> Con unas pinzas, recoja el tamiz que se cubre con embriones dechorionated y lugar en la solución de fijación, lo que permite embriones a caer de la malla. Permita que los embriones para fijar durante 1,5 horas a 4 ° C mientras se mezcla en un Nutator. </li><li> Prepare una placa de Petri llena de cinta de doble cara. Eliminar embriones del fijador con una pipeta Pasteur y colocarlos sobre una superficie grabada de Petri dish.Transfer los embriones en una cantidad mínima de solución fijadora para evitar que el heptano en el fijador de disolver el pegamento de la cinta. Agitar la placa de Petri para hacer una sola capa de embriones. Coloque una placa de Petri en la campana hasta que se evapore heptano. Añade suficiente Tween20 PBS + 0,1% para cubrir los embriones. Devitellinize mano etapa tardía de 16 embriones en un microscopio con una aguja de tungsteno contundente. Recuperar los embriones con una pipeta Pasteur a un tubo de microcentrífuga de 1,5 ml. Los pasos 5-7 se llevan a cabo en este tubo de microcentrífuga. </li><li> Enjuague los embriones en 0,1 M cacodilato, pH 7,4 y después de fijar en una solución que contiene 1% de tetróxido de osmio en 0,1 M cacodilato tampón, pH 7,4 durante 1 hora a temperatura ambiente. Enjuague los embriones con 0,1 M cacodilato, pH 7,4. </li><li> Deshidratar los embriones en una serie gradual de etanol y acetona. Deshidratar embriones con un 50% de etanol durante 10 minutos, seguido por el 70% de etanol durante 10 minutos. Luego se deshidratan en un 90% de acetona durante 10 minutos, y dos pasos de 100% de acetona de 10 minutos cada uno. </li><li> Eliminar la acetona y luego comenzar el proceso de infiltración mediante la adición de una relación 1:1 Epon-resina Spurr: mezcla de acetona a los embriones. Microondas durante tres minutos con un Pelco Biowave microondas Pro, manteniendo la muestra bajo la presión de vacío. Aplicar presión de vacío para la muestra por otros cinco minutos después de la microonda ha terminado. Intercambio de las 1:01 de resina, la mezcla de acetona con Epon-Spurr resina 100% y de microondas de nuevo bajo la presión de vacío. Cambio del 100% Epon-resina Spurr por última vez, y microondas bajo la presión de vacío. </li><li> Con una pipeta Pasteur, los embriones se transfieren desde el tubo de microcentrífuga a un molde de silicona incrustación. Alinear los embriones en una fila de tal manera que el extremo posterior del embrión se alinea con el borde afilado del molde. Hornear en un horno de 70 º C durante la noche. </li><li> Quitar la muestra y prepararse para el corte. </li><li> Comenzar a recortar las secciones con un diamante de 1μm Histo cuchillo y Richert Ultracut E microtomo. Tome nota de que la sección de primer embrión es alcanzado. Desde este punto, corte 100μm en la muestra. Remover una sección con un bucle, y el lugar en un portaobjetos de vidrio. En pocas palabras el calor de la sección en un plato caliente. Tinción de la sección con una gota de azul de metileno. Bajo un microscopio de luz identificar la luz del corazón. </li><li> Los cortes de secciones de 90nm con un ultra Diamante 45 ° Cuchillo y Richert Ultracut E microtomo. Recoger varias secciones en una rejilla de cobre. </li><li> Las rejillas son teñidas con acetato de uranilo al 3% saturada en etanol al 50% durante diez minutos y luego enjuagar tres veces con agua destilada. Entonces, las redes están manchadas con citrato de plomo (0.04gms disuelto en 10 ml de agua destilada doble y 100 ml de NaOH 10M) durante 2,5 minutos en una cámara que contiene gránulos de NaOH para crear un CO 2 libre de medio ambiente. Las rejillas se lavaron tres veces con agua destilada. </li><li> Las secciones se examinaron con un microscopio electrónico JEOL 1200EX a 80kV, y se fotografiaron con una cámara digital de AMT. </li></ol>

<ol>
	<li>Tepass, U., Hartenstein, V. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=The+Development+of+Cellular+Junctions+in+the+Drosophila+embryo.">The Development of Cellular Junctions in the Drosophila embryo.</a> Dev. Biol. 161, 563-596 (1994).</li><li>Sullivan, W., Ashburner, M., Hawley, S. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=.">.</a> Drosophila Protocols. , (2000).</li><li>Santiago-Martinez, E., Soplop, N. H., Patel, R., Kramer, S. G. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Repulsion+by+Slit+and+Roundabout+prevents+Shotgun/E-cadherin-mediated+cell+adhesion+during+Drosophila+heart+tube+lumen+formation.">Repulsion by Slit and Roundabout prevents Shotgun/E-cadherin-mediated cell adhesion during Drosophila heart tube lumen formation.</a> J. Cell Biol. 182, 241-248 (2008).</li></ol>

La morfogénesis del tubo cardíaco embrionario de Drosophila se ha convertido en un sistema modelo valioso para el estudio de la adhesión celular y cambios en las células forma durante el desarrollo embrionario. Uno de los desafíos que enfrentan en el estudio de esta estructura es que la luz del tubo cardíaco es difícil de visualizar en los embriones de montaje en su conjunto. La técnica se demuestra en este vídeo, que es una adaptación de los procedimientos anteriormente descritos 1-2, ha demostrado ser exitoso en forma eficiente y fiable el análisis de un gran número de genotipos para el tubo de corazón y la formación del lumen 3.

preparation of embryos for electron microscopy of the drosophila embryonic heart tube

La morfogénesis de la<em&gt; Drosophila</emTubo&gt; corazón embrionario se ha convertido en un sistema modelo valioso para estudiar la migración celular, la adhesión célula-célula y cambios en las células forma durante el desarrollo embrionario. Uno de los desafíos que enfrentan en el estudio de esta estructura es que la luz del tubo cardíaco, así como las características de la membrana que son cruciales para la formación del corazón del tubo, son difíciles de visualizar en los embriones de montaje en su conjunto, debido al pequeño tamaño del tubo cardíaco e intra-luminal del espacio en relación con el embrión. El uso de la microscopía electrónica de transmisión permite una mayor ampliación de estas estructuras y da la ventaja de examinar los embriones en la sección transversal, que revela fácilmente el tamaño y la forma de la luz. En este video, se detalla el proceso para la fijación fiable, inclusión, y la sección de la etapa terminal<em&gt; Drosophila</em&gt; Embriones con el fin de visualizar la luz del tubo del corazón, así como importantes estructuras celulares, incluyendo las uniones célula-célula y la membrana basal.

Watch this Scientific Journal Video about Preparation of embryos for Electron Microscopy of the Drosophila embryonic heart tube at JoVE.com

Preparation of embryos for Electron Microscopy of the Drosophila embryonic heart tube

Se describe un proceso para la fijación, inclusión, corte, y las imágenes de la etapa terminal<em&gt; Drosophila</em&gt; Embriones de Microscopía Electrónica Trasmission del tubo cardíaco embrionario. Esta técnica permite la visualización de la luz del tubo del corazón, así como de la membrana basal, que recubre la luz del corazón.

Preparación de embriones para Microscopía Electrónica de la Drosophila Tubo cardíaco embrionario

The morphogenesis of the Drosophila  embryonic heart tube has emerged as a valuable model system for studying cell migration, cell-cell adhesion and cell ...

preparation-embryos-for-electron-microscopy-drosophila-embryonic

Research

JoVE Journal

Biology

Preparation of embryos for Electron Microscopy of the Drosophila embryonic heart tube

15.2K vistas.  UMDNJ-Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences and Rutgers: The State University of New Jersey. Se describe un proceso para la fijación, inclusión, corte, y las imágenes de la etapa terminal Drosophila Embriones de Microscopía Electrónica Trasmission del tubo cardíaco embrionario. Esta técnica permite la visualización de la luz del tubo del corazón, así como de la membrana basal, que recubre la luz del corazón.

Video: Preparation of embryos for Electron Microscopy of the Drosophila embryonic heart tube

Preparation of Neuronal Cultures from Midgastrula Stage Drosophila Embryos

This video illustrates the procedure for making primary neuronal cultures from midgastrula stage Drosophila embryos. The methods for collecting embryos and their dechorionation using bleach are demonstrated. Using a glass pipet attached to a mouth suction tube, we illustrate the removal of all cells from single embryos. The method for dispersing cells from each embyro into a small (5 l) drop of medium on an uncoated glass coverslip is demonstrated. A view through the microscope at 1 hour after plating illustrates the preferred cell density. Most of the cells that survive when grown in defined medium are neuroblasts that divide one or more times in culture before extending neuritic processes by 12-24 hours. A view through the microscope illustrates the level of neurite outgrowth and branching expected in a healthy culture at 2 days in vitro. The cultures are grown in a simple bicarbonate based defined medium, in a 5% CO2 incubator at 22-24&deg;C. Neuritic processes continue to elaborate over the first week in culture and when they make contact with neurites from neighboring cells they often form functional synaptic connections. Neurons in these cultures express voltage-gated sodium, calcium, and potassium channels and are electrically excitable. This culture system is useful for studying molecular genetic and environmental factors that regulate neuronal differentiation, excitability, and synapse formation/function.

This video demonstrates the preparation of primary neuronal cultures from midgastrula stage Drosophila embryos. Views of live cultures show cells 1 hour after plating and differentiated neurons after 2 days of growth in a bicarbonate-based defined medium. The neurons are electrically excitable and form synaptic connections.

Preparación de cultivos neuronales a partir de embriones de Drosophila Midgastrula Etapa

This video illustrates the procedure for making primary neuronal cultures from midgastrula stage Drosophila embryos. The methods for collecting embryos ...

Investigación

Biología

The Preparation of Drosophila Embryos for Live-Imaging Using the Hanging Drop Protocol

Green fluorescent protein (GFP)-based timelapse live-imaging is a powerful technique for studying the genetic regulation of dynamic processes such as tissue morphogenesis, cell-cell adhesion, or cell death. Drosophila embryos expressing GFP are readily imaged using either stereoscopic or confocal microscopy. A goal of any live-imaging protocol is to minimize detrimental effects such as dehydration and hypoxia. Previous protocols for preparing Drosophila embryos for live-imaging analysis have involved placing dechorionated embryos in halocarbon oil and sandwiching them between a halocarbon gas-permeable membrane and a coverslip1-3. The introduction of compression through mounting embryos in this manner represents an undesirable complication for any biomechanical-based analysis of morphogenesis. Our method, which we call the hanging drop protocol, results in excellent viability of embryos during live imaging and does not require that embryos be compressed. Briefly, the hanging drop protocol involves the placement of embryos in a drop of halocarbon oil that is suspended from a coverslip, which is, in turn, fixed in position over a humid chamber. In addition to providing gas exchange and preventing dehydration, this arrangement takes advantage of the buoyancy of embryos in halocarbon oil to prevent them from drifting out of position during timelapse acquisition. This video describes in detail how to collect and prepare Drosophila embryos for live imaging using the hanging drop protocol. This protocol is suitable for imaging dechorionated embryos using stereomicroscopy or any upright compound fluorescence microscope.

The Preparation of Drosophila Embryos for Live-Imaging Using the Hanging Drop Protocol

A simple, inexpensive, and effective method of preparing Drosophila embryos for live-imaging analysis is presented. Our protocol provides humidity and gas exchange and does not compress the Drosophila embryo. This method is suitable for GFP-based live imaging of Drosophila embryos using a stereomicroscope or upright compound microscope.

La preparación de los Drosophila Los embriones para Live-Imaging utilizando el protocolo de gota

Green fluorescent protein (GFP)-based timelapse live-imaging is a powerful technique for studying the genetic regulation of dynamic processes such as ...

Fluorescent Labeling of Drosophila Heart Structures

The Drosophila melanogaster dorsal vessel, or heart, is a tubular structure comprised of a single layer of contractile cardiomyocytes, pericardial cells that align along each side of the heart wall, supportive alary muscles and, in adults, a layer of ventral longitudinal muscle cells. The contractile fibers house conserved constituents of the muscle cytoarchitecture including densely packed bundles of myofibrils and cytoskeletal/submembranous protein complexes, which interact with homologous components of the extracellular matrix. Here we describe a protocol for the fixation and the fluorescent labeling of particular myocardial elements from the hearts of dissected larvae and semi-intact adult Drosophila. Specifically, we demonstrate the labeling of sarcomeric F-actin and of &alpha;-actinin in larval hearts. Additionally, we perform labeling of F-actin and &alpha;-actinin in myosin-GFP expressing adult flies and of &alpha;-actinin and pericardin, a type IV extracellular matrix collagen, in wild type adult hearts. Particular attention is given to a mounting strategy for semi-intact adult hearts that minimizes handling and optimizes the opportunity for maintaining the integrity of the cardiac tubes and the associated tissues. These preparations are suitable for imaging via fluorescent and confocal microscopy. Overall, this procedure allows for careful and detailed analysis of the structural characteristics of the heart from a powerful genetically tractable model system.

Fluorescent Labeling of Drosophila Heart Structures

Here we describe a basic protocol for fluorescent labeling of different elements of heart tubes from larva and adult Drosophila melanogaster. These specimens are well-suited for imaging via fluorescent or confocal microscopy. This technique permits detailed structural analysis of the features of the hearts from a powerful model organism.

Marcaje fluorescente de Drosophila Estructuras del Corazón

The Drosophila melanogaster dorsal vessel, or heart, is a tubular structure comprised of a single layer of contractile cardiomyocytes, pericardial cells ...

Visualizing the Beating Heart in Drosophila

The Drosophila heart has recently emerged as a good model system for examining the genetic, cellular, and molecular mechanisms underlying function in myogenic hearts. A key step in examining heart function in the fly is finding a way to access the heart in a manner that preserves its myogenic function while still allowing the beating heart organ to be observed and recorded. Two different methods for observing and recording the beating heart in both larva and adult Drosophila are described here. Our semi-intact preparation using adult flies allows clear visualization of the abdominal heart without interference from the pigmented cuticle and overlying fat bodies. To record larval heart beats it is necessary to immobilize the larva, which minimizes body wall movements thereby reducing heart movements that are not associated with myocardial contractions. Our methodologies produce stable adult and larval heart preparations that can beat for hours at rates of 1-3 Hz.

Visualizing the Beating Heart in Drosophila

Technique required for visualizing the beating heart in larval and adult Drosophila are presented. Each life stage requires a different methodology.

Visualizar el corazón latiendo en Drosophila</em

The Drosophila heart has recently emerged as a good model system for examining the genetic, cellular, and molecular mechanisms underlying function in ...

Preparation of Drosophila S2 cells for Light Microscopy

The ideal experimental system would be cheap and easy to maintain, amenable to a variety of techniques, and would be supported by an extensive literature and genome sequence database. Cultured Drosophila S2 cells, the product of disassociated 20-24 hour old embryos1, possess all these properties. Consequently, S2 cells are extremely well-suited for the analysis of cellular processes, including the discovery of the genes encoding the molecular components of the process or mechanism of interest. The features of S2 cells that are most responsible for their utility are the ease with which they are maintained, their exquisite sensitivity to double-stranded (ds)RNA-mediated interference (RNAi), and their tractability to fluorescence microscopy as either live or fixed cells.
S2 cells can be grown in a variety of media, including a number of inexpensive, commercially-available, fully-defined, serum-free media2. In addition, they grow optimally and quickly at 21-24&deg;C and can be cultured in a variety of containers. Unlike mammalian cells, S2 cells do not require a regulated atmosphere, but instead do well with normal air and can even be maintained in sealed flasks.
Complementing the ease of RNAi in S2 cells is the ability to readily analyze experimentally-induced phenotypes by phase or fluorescence microscopy of fixed or live cells. S2 cells grow in culture as a single monolayer but do not display contact inhibition. Instead, cells tend to grow in colonies in dense cultures. At low density, S2 cultures grown on glass or tissue culture-treated plastic are round and loosely-attached. However, the cytology of S2 cells can be greatly improved by inducing them to flatten extensively by briefly culturing them on a surface coated with the lectin, concanavalin A (ConA)3. S2 cells can also be stably transfected with fluorescently-tagged markers to label structures or organelles of interest in live or fixed cells. Therefore, the usual scenario for the microscopic analysis of cells is this: first, S2 cells (which can possess transgenes to express tagged markers) are treated by RNAi to eliminate a target protein(s). RNAi treatment time can be adjusted to allow for differences in protein turn-over kinetics and to minimize cell trauma/death if the target protein is important for viability. Next, the treated cells are transferred to a dish containing a coverslip pre-coated with conA to induce cells to spread and tightly adhere to the glass. Finally, cells are imaged with the researcher's choice of microscopy modes. S2 cells are particularly good for studies requiring extended visualization of live cells since these cells stay healthy at room temperature and normal atmosphere.

Preparation of Drosophila S2 cells for Light Microscopy

Drosophila Schneider (S2) cells are an increasingly popular system for the discovery and functional analysis of genes. Our goal is to describe some of the microscopic techniques that make S2 cells such an increasingly important experimental system.

Preparación de Drosophila Células S2 para microscopía de luz

The ideal experimental system would be cheap and easy to maintain, amenable to a variety of techniques, and would be supported by an extensive literature ...

A Novel Ex vivo Culture Method for the Embryonic Mouse Heart

Developmental studies in the mouse are hampered by the inaccessibility of the embryo during gestation. Thus, protocols to isolate and culture individual organs of interest are essential to provide a method of both visualizing changes in development and allowing novel treatment strategies. To promote the long-term culture of the embryonic heart at late stages of gestation, we developed a protocol in which the excised heart is cultured in a semi-solid, dilute Matrigel. This substrate provides enough support to maintain the three-dimensional structure but is flexible enough to allow continued contraction. In brief, hearts are excised from the embryo and placed in a mixture of cold Matrigel diluted 1:1 with growth medium. After the diluted Matrigel solidifies, growth medium is added to the culture dish. Hearts excised as late as embryonic day 16.5 were viable for four days post-dissection. Analysis of the coronary plexus shows that this method does not disrupt coronary vascular development. Thus, we present a novel method for long-term culture of embryonic hearts.

A Novel Ex vivo Culture Method for the Embryonic Mouse Heart

Developmental studies in the mouse are hampered by the inaccessibility of the embryo during gestation. To promote the long-term culture of the embryonic heart at late stages of gestation, we developed a protocol in which the excised heart is cultured in a semi-solid, dilute Matrigel.

A Novel<em&gt; Ex vivo</em&gt; Método de la cultura para el corazón de embriones de ratón

Developmental studies in the mouse are hampered  by the inaccessibility of the embryo during gestation. Thus, protocols to  isolate and culture individual ...

Drosophila Preparation and Longitudinal Imaging of Heart Function In Vivo Using Optical Coherence Microscopy (OCM)

Longitudinal study of the heartbeat in small animals contributes to understanding structural and functional changes during heart development. Optical coherence microscopy (OCM) has been demonstrated to be capable of imaging small animal hearts with high spatial resolution and ultrahigh imaging speed. The high image contrast and noninvasive properties make OCM ideal for performing longitudinal studies without requiring tissue dissections or staining. Drosophila has been widely used as a model organism in cardiac developmental studies due to its high number of orthologous human disease genes, its similarity of molecular mechanisms and genetic pathways with vertebrates, its short life cycle, and its low culture cost. Here, the experimental protocols are described for the preparation of Drosophila and optical imaging of the heartbeat with a custom OCM system throughout the life cycle of the specimen. By following the steps provided in this report, transverse M-mode and 3D OCM images can be acquired to conduct longitudinal studies of the Drosophila cardiac morphology and function. The en face and axial sectional OCM images and the heart rate (HR) and cardiac activity period (CAP) histograms, were also shown to analyze the heart structural changes and to quantify the heart dynamics during Drosophila metamorphosis, combined with the videos constructed with M-mode images to trace cardiac activity intuitively. Due to the genetic similarity between Drosophila and vertebrates, longitudinal study of heart morphology and dynamics in fruit flies could help reveal the origins of human heart diseases. The protocol here would provide an effective method to perform a wide range of studies to understand the mechanisms of cardiac diseases in humans.

Drosophila Preparation and Longitudinal Imaging of Heart Function In Vivo Using Optical Coherence Microscopy OCM

Here, the experimental protocols are described for preparing Drosophila at different developmental stages and performing longitudinal optical imaging of Drosophila heartbeats using a custom optical coherence microscopy (OCM) system. The cardiac morphological and dynamical changes can be quantitatively characterized by analyzing the heart structural and functional parameters from OCM images.

Drosophila Preparación e Imagen longitudinal de la función cardiaca in vivo utilizando microscopía de coherencia óptica (OCM)

Longitudinal study of the heartbeat in small animals contributes to understanding structural and functional changes during heart development. Optical ...

Sample Preparation and Imaging of Exosomes by Transmission Electron Microscopy

Exosomes are nano-sized extracellular vesicles secreted by body fluids and are known to represent the characteristics of cells that secrete them. The contents and morphology of the secreted vesicles reflect cell behavior or physiological status, for example cell growth, migration, cleavage, and death. The exosomes&#39; role may depend highly on size, and the size of exosomes varies from 30 to 300 nm. The most widely used method for exosome imaging is negative staining, while other results are based on Cryo-Transmission Electron Microscopy, Scanning Electron Microscopy, and Atomic Force Microscopy. The typical exosome&#39;s morphology assessed through negative staining is a cup-shape, but further details are not yet clear. An exosome well-characterized through structural study is necessary particular in medical and pharmaceutical fields. Therefore, function-dependent morphology should be verified by electron microscopy techniques such as labeling a specific protein in the detailed structure of exosome. To observe detailed structure, ultrathin sectioned images and negative stained images of exosomes were compared. In this protocol, we suggest transmission electron microscopy for the imaging of exosomes including negative staining, whole mount immuno-staining, block preparation, thin section, and immuno-gold labelling.

This protocol describes the various techniques necessary for transmission electron microscopy including negative staining, ultrathin sectioning for detailed structure, and immuno-gold labelling to determine the positions of specific proteins in exosomes.

Preparación de la muestra y proyección de imagen de exosomas por microscopía electrónica de transmisión

Exosomes are nano-sized extracellular vesicles secreted by body fluids and are known to represent the characteristics of cells that secrete them. The ...

Miniaturized Sample Preparation for Transmission Electron Microscopy

Due to recent technological progress, cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) is rapidly becoming a standard method for the structural analysis of protein complexes to atomic resolution. However, protein isolation techniques and sample preparation methods for EM remain a bottleneck. A relatively small number (100,000 to a few million) of individual protein particles need to be imaged for the high-resolution analysis of proteins by the single particle EM approach, making miniaturized sample handling techniques and microfluidic principles feasible.
A miniaturized, paper-blotting-free EM grid preparation method for sample pre-conditioning, EM grid priming and post processing that only consumes nanoliter-volumes of sample is presented. The method uses a dispensing system with sub-nanoliter precision to control liquid uptake and EM grid priming, a platform to control the grid temperature thereby determining the relative humidity above the EM grid, and a pick-and-plunge-mechanism for sample vitrification. For cryo-EM, an EM grid is placed on the temperature-controlled stage and the sample is aspirated into a capillary. The capillary tip is positioned in proximity to the grid surface, the grid is loaded with the sample and excess is re-aspirated into the microcapillary. Subsequently, the sample film is stabilized and slightly thinned by controlled water evaporation regulated by the offset of the platform temperature relative to the dew-point. At a given point the pick-and-plunge mechanism is triggered, rapidly transferring the primed EM grid into liquid ethane for sample vitrification. Alternatively, sample-conditioning methods are available to prepare nanoliter-sized sample volumes for negative stain (NS) EM.
The methodologies greatly reduce sample consumption and avoid approaches potentially harmful to proteins, such as the filter paper blotting used in conventional methods. Furthermore, the minuscule amount of sample required allows novel experimental strategies, such as fast sample conditioning, combination with single-cell lysis for &#34;visual proteomics,&#34; or &#34;lossless&#34; total sample preparation for quantitative analysis of complex samples.

An instrument and methods for the preparation of nanoliter-sized sample volumes for transmission electron microscopy is presented. No paper-blotting steps are required, thus avoiding the detrimental consequences this can have for proteins, significantly reducing sample loss and enabling the analysis of single cell lysate for visual proteomics.

Preparación de muestras miniatura para microscopia electrónica de transmisión

Due to recent technological progress, cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) is rapidly becoming a standard method for the structural analysis of protein ...

Biological Sample Preparation by High-pressure Freezing, Microwave-assisted Contrast Enhancement, and Minimal Resin Embedding for Volume Imaging

The described sample preparation technique is designed to combine the best quality of ultrastructural preservation with the most suitable contrast for the imaging modality in a focused ion beam scanning electron microscope (FIB-SEM), which is used to obtain stacks of sequential images for 3D reconstruction and modelling. High-pressure freezing (HPF) allows close to native structural preservation, but the subsequent freeze substitution often does not provide sufficient contrast, especially for a bigger specimen, which is needed for high-quality imaging in the SEM required for 3D reconstruction. Therefore, in this protocol, after the freeze substitution, additional contrasting steps are carried out at room temperature. Although these steps are performed in a microwave, it is also possible to follow traditional bench processing, which requires longer incubation times.The subsequent embedding in minimal amounts of resin allows for faster and more precise targeting and preparation inside the FIB-SEM. This protocol is especially useful for samples that require preparation by high-pressure freezing for a reliable ultrastructural preservation but do not gain enough contrast during the freeze substitution for volume imaging using FIB-SEM. In combination with the minimal resin embedding, this protocol provides an efficient workflow for the acquisition of high-quality volume data.

Here we present a protocol for combining two sample processing techniques, high-pressure freezing and microwave-assisted sample processing, followed by minimal resin embedding for acquiring data with a focused ion beam scanning electron microscope (FIB-SEM). This is demonstrated using a mouse tibial nerve sample and Caenorhabditis elegans.

Preparación de muestras biológicas por congelación de alta presión, realce del contraste asistida por microondas y mínima inclusión de proyección de imagen de volumen

The described sample preparation technique is designed to combine the best quality of ultrastructural preservation with the most suitable contrast for the ...