Cathodoluminescence applied to the study of human glomerulonephritis

The cathodoluminescence (CL) emission of fluorescent species submitted to electron beam irradiation in a scanning electron microscope may be used to reveal the localisation of the emitter at microscopic level. This technique has been applied to the study of human renal biopsies with membraneous glomerulonephritis. Cryosections of biopsies were stained with specific antibody, labelled either by fluorescein or by rhodamine. Rhodamine exhibited a stronger luminescence and a greater resistance to the 'beam effect' than fluorescein. We obtained CL panchromatic pictures of sections labelled with rhodamine at enlargements up to X15 000, without noticeable quenching of emission.