[Immunoelectron microscopy with labelled antibodies - fundamentals and possibilities of application (author's transl)].

The immunoelectron microscopy employs the specificity of antibodies for the ultrastructural detection of cell and virus components that bear antigenic determinants. Electron dense marker molecules or cytochemical reagents for enzymes are employed as detectors to visualize the antigen-antibody reaction. One group of methods uses covalent binding of the marker molecule or enzyme to the antibody by means of bifunctional reagents. More recently, it has been found that specificity and sensitivity are enhanced of only unlabelled antibodies are used in procedures in which the detector is attached to antibody via immunological bonds only. The review describes the different immunoelectron microscopical methods and the possibilities of their application.