Increasingly, cells isolated from blood and body fluids and cells grown in culture are becoming the experimental models of choice for biological research. The demand for demonstrating biochemical processes morphologically is also becoming commonplace in the electron microscopy laboratory. Successful fixation, in situ embedment, and ultrathinsectioning of cell monolayers can be difficult to achieve for routine transmission electron microscopy. For postembedding immunocytochemistry, processing becomes more complex due to fixation constraints and the use of acrylic resins. The object of this paper is to present a reliable, rapid method for processing monolayers that preserves both the ultrastructure of the cells and antigenicity.

The equipment used for this procedure was a Pelco Model 3440 MAX laboratory microwave oven equipped with a temperature probe and a maximum power output of 800 watts. Using a neon bulb array, the oven cavity is calibrated to determine the microwave energy distribution.