Azimuthal phase retardation microscope for visualizing actin filaments of biological cells

Azimuthal phase retardation microscope for visualizing actin filaments of biological cells.

We developed a new theory-based azimuthal phase retardation microscope to visualize distributions of actin filaments in biological cells without having them with exogenous dyes, fluorescence labels, or stains. The azimuthal phase retardation microscope visualizes distributions of actin filaments by measuring the intensity variations of each pixel of a charge coupled device camera while rotating...

Lamellar phase of stacked two-dimensional rafts of actin filaments.

We examined liquid crystalline phases of the cytoskeletal polyelectrolyte filamentous (F-)actin in the presence of multivalent counterions. As a function of increasing ion concentration, the F-actin rods in either an isotropic or a nematic phase will transform into a new and unexpected lamellar phase of cross-linked rafts (L(XR) phase), before condensing into a bundled phase of parallel, close-...

Actin Filaments

Localization of actin filaments in internodal cells of characean algae. A scanning and transmission electron microscope study

New methods of visualizing subcortical actin filament bundles, or fibrils, in Characean internodes confirm that they are associated with chloroplasts at the surface facing the streaming endoplasm, and reveal that they are continuous over long distances. With the scanning electron microscope, an average of four to six fibrils are seen bridging a file of chloroplasts. The same configuration appea...

An electron microscope study of the interaction between fructose diphosphate aldolase and actin-containing filaments

The interaction of fructose diphosphate aldolase with F-actin, F-actin-tropomyosin, and F-actin-tropomyosin-troponin has been studied by using negative staining. In the absence of troponin, minor aggregates of aldolase and the F-actin filaments are formed. A well-ordered lattice structure is only formed in the case of the fully reconstituted filament when the filament-to-filament spacing is 18n...