ALDEHYDE FIXATION OF CULTURE CELLS FOR STUDIES OF MORPHOLOGY AND PHOSPHATASE ACTIVITY

Improved methods of fixation and incubation enabled exact localization of four phosphatases in cultured chicken heart myoblasts. The flat-growing of myoblasts cultivated in vitro spares the sectioning procedure, therefore these cells are an excellent material for cytochemical investigations. Researching the fixation properties of seven aldehyds, major morphological differences in the quality of fixation were noted. Subsequently the influence of the different fixators on the activities of phosphatases was investigated. Since a perfect fixation of structure does not imply without fail a sufficient preservation of enzyme activity and vice versa, occasionally compromises were necessary. © 1968 Springer-Verlag.