Preparation of soft tissue samples for synchrotron radiation microtomography and nanotomography

In synchrotron radiation microtomography and nanotomography, images are taken while rotating the sample and irradiating it with a high x-ray ux.The structure of the sample must remain xed at micrometer to nanometer precision throughout the image acquisition process.Hence, in order to visualize soft tissue structures by using synchrotron radiation sources, tissue samples should be prepared by taking account of a number of factors that affect the image quality.The procedure described in this protocol is based on our studies reporting 3D structures of biological samples of human, mouse, zebra sh, fruit y, and Escherichia coli.Soft tissue samples prepared according to this procedure can be threedimensionally visualized at a resolution up to 100 nm.