Abstract
Autophagy was originally identified using transmission electron microscopy, and this technique is still one of the most sensitive approaches to detect and quantify the amount of autophagic structures in cells and tissues. However, identification of autophagosomes, amphisomes, and autolysosomes in transmission electron microscopy sections requires experience and caution. The purpose of this chapter is to provide guidelines for correct identification of autophagic structures by morphology in conventional transmission electron microscopy thin sections.
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Acknowledgments
The authors are supported by the Academy of Finland. The Electron Microscopy Unit at the Institute of Biotechnology, University of Helsinki, and the Electron Microscopy Laboratory at the Institute of Biomedicine, University of Turku, are thanked for technical help and availability of instruments. We also thank Helena Vihinen, Institute of Biotechnology, University of Helsinki, for help in high-pressure freezing and freeze substitution.
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Eskelinen, EL., Kallio, K. (2022). Ultrastructure of the Macroautophagy Pathway in Mammalian Cells. In: Loos, B., Wong, E. (eds) Imaging and Quantifying Neuronal Autophagy. Neuromethods, vol 171. Humana, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-0716-1589-8_2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-0716-1589-8_2
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