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Anomalous Contrast in Electron Micrographs of Negative Stained Specimens

Abstract

MANY electron microscope investigations in biology utilize the negative staining technique introduced by Brenner and Horne1. This method involves embedding the objects under investigation in an amorphous material of high scattering power, preferably a phosphotungstate. Thus it becomes possible to obtain images of the objects with high contrast even if they scarcely stand out in normal preparations, so that unknown fine structures can be found in many cases.

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References

  1. Brenner, S., and Horne, R. W., Biochim. Biophys. Acta, 34, 103 (1959).

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  2. Anderson, T. F., The Interpretation of Ultrastructure, 1, 251 (Academic Press, 1962).

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  3. Bradley, D. E., J. Gen. Microbiol., 29, 503 (1962).

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  4. Valentine, R. C., and Horne, R. W., The Interpretation of Ultrastructure, 1, 263 (1962).

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  5. Wildy, P., and Horne, R. W., Progress in Medical Virology, 5, 3 (S. Karger, Basle–New York, 1963).

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MÜLLER, G., MEYERHOFF, K. Anomalous Contrast in Electron Micrographs of Negative Stained Specimens. Nature 201, 590–591 (1964). https://doi.org/10.1038/201590a0

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