Research Activity
freeze etching
freeze etch·ing
Subclass of:
Freeze Fracturing
Definitions related to freeze etching:
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A replica technique in which cells are frozen to a very low temperature and cracked with a knife blade to expose the interior surfaces of the cells or cell membranes. The cracked cell surfaces are then freeze-dried to expose their constituents. The surfaces are now ready for shadowing to be viewed using an electron microscope. This method differs from freeze-fracturing in that no cryoprotectant is used and, thus, allows for the sublimation of water during the freeze-drying process to etch the surfaces.NLM Medical Subject HeadingsU.S. National Library of Medicine, 2021
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Freezing of specimens and then cutting them along natural planes to prepare them for examination under an electron microscope; in freeze fracture, carbon replicas are prepared of the complementary surfaces.CRISP ThesaurusNational Institutes of Health, 2006
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