Semithin Frozen Sections Research Articles

ISH–IEM: a sensitive method to detect endogenous mRNAs at the ultrastructural level

This protocol describes the combination of in situ hybridization (ISH) with cryo-immunolabeling methods to allow the simultaneous detection at the ultrastructural level of mRNAs and proteins. The procedure consists of five steps and takes 4-5 d: (i) acquisition of ultrathin frozen sections of chemically fixed tissues or cells; (ii) hybridization of the sections with digoxigenin (DIG) or biotin-labeled RNA probes; (iii) detection of the bound probe with antibodies and protein A-gold (PAG); (iv) labeling of proteins of interest (optional); and (v) visualization by transmission electron microscopy (immuno-electron microscopy (IEM)). This technique allows the simultaneous detection of endogenous/overexpressed/injected RNAs and proteins while preserving the cell ultrastructure. The protocol is also suitable for mRNA detection on semi-thin frozen sections in combination with immunofluorescence. The localization of targeted transcripts, such as gurken and oskar mRNA in the Drosophila oocyte, and of structural elements and proteins that mediate their localization have been revealed using this technique.

Transcytotic vesicular carriers for polymeric iga receptors accumulate in rat hepatocytes after bile duct ligation

In rat hepatocytes, transcytotic vesicular carriers transport the mature 120 x 10(3) Mr form of the polymeric IgA receptor (pIgA-R), with or without its ligand, pIgA, from the sinusoidal to the biliary plasmalemma, where the ectodomain of the receptor is cleaved to produce an 80 x 10(3) Mr fragment that is secreted into the bile. Here we show that cholestasis induced by bile duct ligation results in the accumulation of transcytotic carriers, identified by the 120 x 10(3) Mr pIgA-R and pIgA, in the pericanalicular cytoplasm of hepatocytes. To determine the extent of pIgA-R accumulation, hepatic total microsomes (TM) were prepared from control and cholestatic rats. Solubilized TM proteins were separated by SDS-PAGE and receptor forms were detected by immunoblotting and autoradiography. Quantitative densitometry of these autoradiograms showed that after duct ligation the 120 x 10(3) Mr receptor accumulated to a level approximately threefold higher than the control. Concomitantly, immunologically related, novel 124, 90 and 80 x 10(3) Mr proteins (cholestatic antigens) became detectable. Immunoblot analyses of biliary and serum proteins showed that cholestasis resulted in: (1) a marked decrease in the concentrations of the 80 x 10(3) Mr receptor and pIgA in the bile, whereas albumin concentrations remained at control levels; and (2) a marked increase in the concentration of the 80 x 10(3) Mr receptor in the serum. Positive sites for pIgA-R were localized to the pericanalicular cytoplasm of hepatocytes by indirect immunofluorescence on semithin frozen sections in cholestatic hepatocytes. The sites were more numerous and the positive signal stronger than in controls. One day post-ligation, pIgA-positive sites were located to the same pericanalicular cytoplasm of hepatocytes; by three days, however, most pIgA appeared in sinusoidal endothelia and Kupffer cells. To validate the vesicular character of the receptor-positive sites, sham-operated and cholestatic livers were processed for either transmission electron microscopy (TEM) or immunogold localization of receptors on thin frozen sections. TEM verified the accumulation of pericanalicular vesicles in cholestatic hepatocytes. Immunogold tests localized pIgA-R to pleiomorphic, pericanalicular vesicles, which were increased in number, size and concentration of antigenic sites in cholestatic hepatocytes. These findings indicate that bile duct ligation provides a method for manipulating the in vivo transcytotic pathway and for accumulating previously unstudied transcytotic carriers in hepatocytes.

Use of fluorescein-phalloidin and DAPI as a counterstain for immunofluorescence microscopic studies with semithin frozen sections.

Use of fluorescein-phalloidin and DAPI as a counterstain for immunofluorescence microscopic studies with semithin frozen sections.

Immunocytochemical studies of endothelial cells in vivo. II. Chicken aortic and capillary endothelial cells exhibit different cell surface distributions of the integrin complex.

Frozen sections of chicken tissues containing aortic and capillary endothelial cells were immunolabeled with two mouse monoclonal antibodies directed to different epitopes of the chicken integrin beta-chain. Integrin is an integral membrane protein complex that is believed to mediate a transmembrane linkage between the extracellular matrix and the actin cytoskeleton. In immunofluorescence experiments with semi-thin frozen sections, the aortic endothelial cells were labeled for integrin all around their surfaces, whereas capillary endothelial cells of heart and kidney were labeled only on their basal surfaces. At the immunofluorescence level of resolution, the distribution of integrin appeared to be correlated with that of F-actin in double-labeling experiments with NBD-phallacidin. These different distributions of integrin on the two types of endothelial cells were definitively confirmed by immunoelectron microscopic labeling with the monoclonal antibodies on ultra-thin frozen sections. These results therefore indicate that the luminal surfaces, as well as the underlying cytoskeleton of capillary endothelial cells, are significantly different in structure from those of aortic endothelial cells. These differences may reflect the vastly different hemodynamic stress to which the two types of endothelial cells are subjected, and in addition may mediate different adhesion properties of the luminal surfaces of the two cell types.

Parvalbumin in most gamma-aminobutyric acid-containing neurons of the rat cerebral cortex.

gamma-Aminobutyric acid (GABA) is one of the major inhibitory neurotransmitters in the central nervous system. In the cerebral cortex, GABA-containing cells represent a subpopulation of interneurons. With semithin frozen sections, it is possible to demonstrate that most GABA neurons in the rat somatosensory cortex contain the calcium-binding protein parvalbumin and that parvalbumin is found virtually only in GABA neurons. Parvalbumin seems to influence the electrical properties and enzymatic machinery to modulate neuronal excitability and activity. The specific role of parvalbumin in GABA-containing cortical cells may be related to controlling the effectiveness of their inhibitory action.