APPLICATION OF SCANNING FORCE MICROSCOPY TO CHROMOSOME ANALYSIS

The application of scanning force microscopy (SFM) to the imaging and analysis of chromosomes is described. This relatively new microscopica l technique has been used to provide high-resolution, three-dimensiona l images of uncoated and unstained human chromosomes in which surface features less than 50 nm have been resolved. Comparison of SFM images with light microscopy data has permitted identification of specific ch romosomes, and images of a chromosome showing a cytogenetic abnormalit y are presented. These preliminary results demonstrate that this techn ique has potential applications in the imaging and analysis of chromos ome structure.