The need to freeze-Dehydration during specimen preparation for electron microscopy collapses the endothelial glycocalyx regardless of fixation method.
Casper HempelSergey KapishnikovAna Joaquina Perez-BernaStephan WernerPeter GuttmannEva PereiroKlaus QvortrupThomas Lars AndresenPublished in: Microcirculation (New York, N.Y. : 1994) (2020)
Both chemical and cryogenic fixation followed by dehydration lead to substantial collapse of the glycocalyx. Cryogenic fixation without freeze substitution could be a way forward although transmission soft x-ray tomography based solely on amplitude contrast seems unsuitable.