Substructure / Substructure

Structure Examples (Ctrl click thumbnails to go to website)

Types /Types

Nucleus

Nuclear
envelope EM of edge of nucleus (nucleus below,
E cytoplasm above). Shows double
ntire nucleus surrounded Cryofracture through nuclear layered nuclear envelope and nuclear
by nuclear envelope envelope (pocked by nuclear pores) pores (arrows)

EM of
Nuclear pores
nucleus
showing
envelope
and pore

Diagram of edge of
nucleus showing
envelope, pore and
connection with RER
Negative stain of isolated nuclear pore
complexes
Hetero- Another cell. Nucleus contains
chromatin patches of heterochromatin
around periphery and central Another cell. Nucleus contains patches
nucleolus surrounded by pale of heterochromatin around periphery
EM euchromatin and central nucleolus surrounded by
Euchromatin
of plasma cell. Nucleus pale euchromatin
contains patches of
heterochromatin
around periphery and
central nucleolus
surrounded by pale
euchromatin

Nucleolus

Dark structure in lower

center of nucleus is the
nucleolus
Dark structure in right half of Enlarged image of nucleolus in part of
nucleus is the nucleolus nucleus
 Pars amorpha
(nucleolar
organizer, NO)
Pars Fibrosa
(PF)
Pars Granulosa
(PG)

Inner and Outer Mitochondria of steroid-secreting cells

Mitochondria of most cells have
membranes
shelf-like cristae have tubulo-vesicular cristae (note
Cristae abundant SER surrounding these
Matrix mitochondria)
Organelles Mitochondria
Matrix granules

SEM of a mitochondrion
Diagram with named
components
 Primary
Lysosomes

Ima
Prima
ges of primary
ry lysosomes tagged enzyme-
lysosomes (dark) histochemically for the presence of the
Lysosomes
marker enzyme acid phosphatase (specific
Image of primary (smaller, to lysosomes)
darker) and secondary (larger,
lighter with inclusions) lysosomes

Secondary
Lysosomes
Se
condary lysosome
(cannot identify Secondary lysosomes
organelles within)

Peroxisomes Limiting
(microbodies) membrane
Dense inclusion
(urate oxidase)

Peroxisomes (micro-
bodies, Mb), also shows Per
lysosome (Ly) oxisomes with urate-oxidase
inclusions
 Vesicular
structures inside
Auto- which one can
phagosomes often identify
parts of other
organelles Autophagosome marked
by white arrow

Randomly
arranged
Smooth cisternae
Endoplasmic (tubular and
Reticulum vesicular
membrane-limited
spaces)

Parallel cisternae
Rough
Endoplasmic
Reticulum Ribosomes
(appear as dark
dots)
Ribosomes

Ribosomes (on
RER and free)
Ribosomes and
polyribosomes
Ribosomes on RER
Pea ribosomes and polyribosomes

Polyribosomes
(on RER and
free; ribosomes
connected by
mRNA)

Polyribosome (isolated
and negatively stained) Rough ER with ribosomes
Free Polyribosomes (chick
fibroblast)
 Cis face (forming
face)
Trans face
Golgi (maturing face)
Complex
Transport
vesicles Ci
s (convex) face above,
Condensing Trans (concave) face
vesicles below
(condensing
vacuoles)
SEM of a single layer from a Golgi stack

Secretory
vesicles
(Secretory
granules)

Sec Secretory vesicles (dark circles) in a

retory vesicles (dark circles) in pancreatic acinar cell
a pancreatic acinar cell
Inclusions

Glycogen
granules

Clusters (rosettes) of glycogen Rosettes of glycogen granules scattered

granules in the liver. Compare among mitochondria peroxisomes and
appearance of glycogen SER
Clusters of glycogen in
granules with ribosomes on
the liver
nearby RER (ribosomes much
smaller)

Lipid droplets Lipid droplets

lack a limiting
membrane

Mitochondria and SER

surrounding lipid
droplets

Lipid droplets forming in adipocytes Lipid droplets surrounded by mitochondria

in a brown adipocyte of a bat
 Unlike lipid
droplets,
cytoplasmic
Vesicles /
vesicles are
Vacuoles
surrounded by Abundant cytoplasmic vesicles
limiting in a Paneth cell
membranes Neurotransmitter
vesicles at a synapse

PMA-treated neutrophil showing cytoplasmic

vesicles (Ve).

Clathrin-
coated
vesicles &
pits

Formation of clathrin-coated vesicles

SEM of clathrin-coated vesicles

Cytoskeleton

Microfilament
s (actin, ~5nm)

Negative staining of
isolated actin filaments
SEM showing microfilaments supporting
(microfilaments)
Microfilaments at the core of microvilli
showing helical
structure microvilli (cross section)

Terminal web

Terminal web (tw) at the apex

of an intestinal epithelial cell
Intermediate
(~10nm) Tonofilaments
filaments
Desmin intermediate filaments
assembled in vitro

Intermediate filament
bundles (cytokeratin,
tonofilaments) attached to a
desmosome

Microtubules
(~24 nm)

Microtubules in an
ultrathin section by
transmission EM
Cross section of myelinated axon
showing cross sections of
microtubules and neurofilaments
(intermediate filaments) within the
axon.
TEM of metaphase cell showing chromatin
(dark, arrows), centrioles (at poles) and
spindle fibers (microtubules) between
centrioles and chromatin.
Centriole
Two centriole pairs
Centriole with parts cut in
cross and longitudinal
section

Centriole in cross section showing 9

triplets of microtubules

Basal Body

Basal body located at the

base of a cilium Two basal bodies side by side

Diagram comparing axonemes of cilia and

basal bodies
 Axoneme

Cilium in cross and Cross sections through microtubules Higher power image of axoneme
longitudinal section comprising the axoneme of cilia
showing cross sections of microtubules

Intercellular space between two cell

membranes
Intercellular
Space I
ntercellular space Intercellular space (middle
between two arrow)
epithelial cells
(Mv=microvillus, TJ=tight
junction, AJ=adherens
junction,
DS=desmosome)

Plasma Trilaminar plasma

membrane membrane
 TEM section and freeze fracture
Multilayered membranes of the myelin
of plasma membranes
sheath wrapped around an axon

Glycocalyx
Gly
cocalyx covering Erythrocyte glycocalyx
microvilli

Glycocalyx on the surface of microvilli of

intestinal epithelial cells