PT Journal AU Skaloud, P Radochova, B TI Confocal microscopy of the green-algal chloroplast SO Czech Phycology PY 2004 BP 183 EP 190 VL 4 IS 1 AB The confocal microscopy proves useful in the investigations of chloroplast morphology and ontogeny of several coccal green algae. The three-dimensional images allow the reconstruction of the chloroplast morphology and the exact determination of the chloroplast number in the cell. This character is essential for species determination in numerous genera of coccal green algae. The simple method of pyrenoid visualisation by confocal images is demonstrated. Within the pyrenoid we can recognise the structure and shape of the invaginated thylakoids. In comparison with the methodically difficult transmission electron microscopy, the confocal microscopy provides a simple and appropriate method for the morphological and taxonomic studies of various algal taxa. ER