Evaluation of microvilli in gluten-sensitive enteropathy by means of scanning and transmission electron microscopy.

Biopsies from jejunum of nonceliac patients and patients with active celiac disease were studied and compared by means of transmission (TEM) and scanning (SEM) electron microscopy. Fracturing of dried specimens enabled the visualization of the epithelial microvilli with SEM. Alteration in microvillous appearance in celiac patients, as determined by TEM, could also be clearly detected in SEM images. The SEM preparation is easier to accomplish and less time-consuming compared to the TEM. This may be an advantage for clinical assessment of jejunal biopsies in syndromes in which early detection of alterations in microvilli in the epithelial mucosa is of diagnostic value.