Fig. 3. Representative AFM images of both the cytoplasmic and nucleoplasmic faces of the nuclear envelope 30 minutes after injecting solvent (nuclear isolation medium, NIM) into Xenopus laevis oocytes. Upon NIM injection, the cytoplasmic face of the nuclear envelope contains nuclear pore complexes (NPCs) appearing as cargo-free smooth rings exhibiting a diameter of 98.3±0.53 nm (n=200). The nucleoplasmic face of the nuclear envelope also reveals cargo-free NPCs, surrounded throughout by lamins, characterized by their prominent filamentous structure.