Observation of meristematic cells in seedlings of higher plants using a high pressure freezing method

We have employed high pressure freezing techniques to examine cytoskeletal and membrane structures in meristematic cells of plant seedlings. This method results in improved preservation of preprophase bands of microtubules as well as other structures in onion and tobacco roots and in meristematic cells of onion cotyledons. In this paper, we describe the use of high pressure freezing and freeze substitution to obtain thin sections of samples embedded in Spurr's resin and discuss problems with these procedures. We also present new results obtained from high pressure frozen cells and discuss the possible applications of high pressure freezing in plant cell biology.