Three-dimensional images of the mouse submandibular gland: an HRSEM study.

The three-dimensional characteristics of the intracellular components of acinar cells were revealed using the osmium-DMSO-osmium method. The specimens were macerated in diluted osmium after being fractured in DMSO solution. The stacks of the Golgi apparatus, the rough endoplasmic reticulum and mitochondria are clearly seen. The lamellae of the rough endoplasmic reticulum, located around the nuclei and the Golgi apparatus, are shown in three-dimensional images. At high magnification, the mitochondria clearly reveal their cristae mitochondriales.