Electron microscopy after direct ultracentrifugation.

A direct ultracentrifugation technique was used in the preparation of skin lesion specimens for examination by electron microscopy. The concentration factor of centrifuged specimens was estimated to be in excess of 1,000-fold compared to conventional adsorption techniques. This resulted in an increase of over 300% in the detection rate of herpesviruses and poxviruses from skin lesion specimens.