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| Intertek Pharmaceutical Services > Biological TEM Analysis |
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BIOLOGICAL TEM Laboratory |
Transmission Electron Microscopy Analysis of Biological Samples |
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The Intertek North West Technology Centre (UK) has extensive expertise and capability in performing transmission electron microscopy on biological samples, including human tissue, animal tissue, hair, etc.
The biological samples are typically chemically fixed, processed into resin and are cut into Ultrathin sections prior to staining and viewing in the transmission electron microscope (TEM). The output from the microscope is digital images burned onto CDs. The lab has the added capability to perform X-ray Microanalysis on the samples, thus giving elemental information. The laboratory also has experience in colloidal gold labelling technology. Contact Intertek for more information.
TEM Laboratory Capabilities and Services include:
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Morphological Studies:
- Morphology and change tracking of biological tissues treated with drugs, hair treated with various chemical and physical applications, and diseased tissues. We are able to provide image analysis
Specimen Substrate Interactions:
- Growth of organisms on different substrates
X-ray Analysis in the Electron Microscope:
- Distribution of elements in the sample can be determined. The technique is known as Energy Dispersive X-Ray Analysis (EDX). The lab is equipped with an Oxford INCA x-sight system, with a resolution of 136eV.
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Preparation Methods:
- Preparation of ultrathin sections of human tissue embedded in epoxy resin
- Stain the sections with a Leica EM Stain, which gives us reproducible staining. The sections are then viewed in a Philips CM120 STEM. Images are recorded using our SIS MegaView III digital camera, which has a resolution of 1376 x 1032 x 8. This produces ca 1.4MB TIFF files
Ultramicrotomy:
- The lab Ultramicrotome is a Reichert Ultracut S. This instrument is capable of cutting sections in the range 10nm to 5µm. The lab can cut resin embedded samples both for light microscopy (LM) and for TEM. We use glass knives for trimming and Diamond knives for sectioning for TEM, LM and block topping instrument has a Cryo attachment to allow the sectioning of materials at temperatures down to ca -185°C
Cryo Applications:
- We have the Ultramicrotome and it’s Cryo attachment that gives us the capability to section materials that have been frozen in liquid nitrogen slush prior to transferring them to the TEM as frozen sections
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