PREPARATION OF BASAL-CELL MEMBRANES FOR SCANNING PROBE MICROSCOPY

Scanning probe microscopy has the potential for investigating membrane s in a physiological environment. We prepared with a lysis-squirting p rotocol basal cell membranes, that are suitable for scanning probe mic roscopy. Investigations using atomic force microscopy under liquid rev ealed cellular filaments which correlated perfectly with fluorescently stained actin filaments, Globular structures with a diameter as littl e as 10 nm could be resolved by stripping cytoplasmic components from the membranes. Therefore, cytoplasmic sides of supported basal cell me mbranes prove useful to gain high resolution with scanning probe micro scopy in studies of plasma membrane associated structures and processe s under buffer solution, (C) 1998 Federation of European Biochemical S ocieties.