Hi, Michelle,
We routinely cut fixed (formalin/gluteraldehyde) rat spinal cord both in
transverse & longitudinal planes on our vibratome; though for our work we
cut 50um sections.  Our vibratome is set-up with a cutting-reservoir of 1M
PBS kept chilled to 4C.  We use superglue (no lab should be without it!) to
attach the cord in proper orientation to a base-block, then screw-clamp the
base-block in the reservoir...and cut.  We remove each section as it comes
off the blade using a paintbrush then store it in a 25-well tissue culture
plate - allowing us to retain serial order as we cut from dorsal to
ventral.  You'll probably have to "experiment" with the speed & amplitude
for optimal cartilage -cutting parameters.  I hope this helps...if you need
more details, feel free to contact me directly.
~Francie~

** these opinions are my own, etc....please excuse any errors...I'm a
hunt-n-peck typist and not that good a spellar ;) **

Francie Gallery
     Histology Department, Suffolk County Medical Examiner's Office,
Hauppauge, NY
     Department of Neurobiology & Behavior, SUNY at Stony Brook, Stony
Brook, NY

FGALLERY@neurobio.sunysb.edu