Localization of ribosomal and telomeric DNA sequences in intact plant nuclei by in-situ hybridization and three-dimensional optical microscopy

We have combined the use of three-dimensional (3-D) fluorescence microscopy and computer image processing of images with in-situ hybridization to analyse the 3-D organization of interphase nuclei in plants. In sections of root tips of Pisum sativum, using cDNA probes, we have shown that telomeres are arranged around the nuclear periphery and that the ribosomal genes in this species appear to exist in discrete, 3-D domains.