Help:electron microscopy of adenovirus

[James Campbell]

I am trying to get clear micrographs of the fine fiber proteins which extend from adenoviruses.

I am currently using carbon-coated grids and a Philips300 EM and have found that staining the virus with 
sodium silicotungstate produces very nice definition of the virus capsid, however, the fibres are seldom 
visible.  Also, the few times I do see the fibres, they don't show up on the micrographs, or when they do 
they are very blurry.   I  have noticed that when taking pictures, the carbon film tends to drift.  

If you have any suggestions on how to prevent this drift or know of any other techniques for adenovirus 
fiber staining, I would be very grateful. 

Sophia Mittas
sophia.mittas at utoronto.ca