On Thu, 7 Dec 2000, Headley Louise wrote:

> What is mollifex and what does it do?

It's a liquid containing glycerol, phenol, acetone and alcohol.
You apply it the the cut surface of a paraffin block. It softens
the tissue, making it easier to cut the next few sections. Many
people find that plain water is just as good. This subject was
well reviewed by Maria Wynnchuk (1992) in J Histotechnol 
Vol 15 (Part 4): pp 321-323.

 John A. Kiernan,
 Department of Anatomy & Cell Biology,
 The University of Western Ontario,
 LONDON,  Canada  N6A 5C1