Taxol stabilized microtubules were imaged in their native state in buffer solution without any fixation by an atomic force microscope (AFM) operated in tapping mode in liquids. Glass cover slips were derivatized with a positively charged silane to adsorb the filaments. The adsorbed microtubules could be imaged stably without any visible damage for hours. In cases where a microtubule crossed above another one, it often broke to follow the curvature of the underlying one. Longitudinal structures with a spacing of about 8 nm could be resolved suggesting they are protofilaments.