In situ liquid propane jet‐freezing and freeze‐etching of monolayer cell cultures

Abstract
A procedure for in situ liquid propane jet-freezing of unfixed and unglycerinated monolayer cell cultures is described. The method was used to study monolayer cultures of rat Sertoli cells and human monocytes. The described procedure gives a cooling rate during specimen freezing high enough to yield adequately frozen specimens in the absence of any cryoprotectant. Use of the procedure eliminates artefacts usually caused by cell fixation and addition of cryoprotectives.