Direct visualization of the outer membrane of mycobacteria and corynebacteria in their native state.

ABSTRACT: The cell envelope of mycobacteria, which include the causative agents of tuberculosis and leprosy, is crucial for their success as pathogens. Despite a continued strong emphasis on identifying the multiple chemical components of this envelope, it has proven difficult to combine its components into a comprehensive structural model, primarily because the available ultrastructural data rely on conventional electron microscopy embedding and sectioning, which are known to induce artifacts. The existence of an outer membrane bilayer has long been postulated but has never been directly observed by electron microscopy of ultrathin sections. Here we have used cryo-electron microscopy of vitreous sections (CEMOVIS) to perform a detailed ultrastructural analysis of three species belonging to the Cory

SUBMITTER: Zuber B 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2519390 | biostudies-literature | 2008 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature