RE: Inforamtion on cutting hard tissues
From: | "Frank, John D." <john_frank@merck.com> |
Contact Linda Jenkins at jlinda@ces.clemson.edu. She is the chair of the
Hard Tissue Committee for the National Society for Histotechnology and might
have some ideas for you.
John
John D. Frank
Merck Research Laboratories
WP45-251
PO Box 4
West Point, PA 19486
215-652-5379
215-652-7758 (fax)
john_frank@merck.com
> ----------
> From: Kimcatk@aol.com[SMTP:Kimcatk@aol.com]
> Sent: Tuesday, November 14, 2000 1:25 PM
> To: ssharma@watsonpharm.com; histonet@pathology.swmed.edu
> Subject: Re: Inforamtion on cutting hard tissues
>
> Dear Sharma,
> I think there is a hard tissue subgroup of HistoNet that may have
> ideas
> to rescue you. Is this correct, HistoNetters? Also, I have heard reports
> of
> histologists doing plastic sectioning for large pieces of undecalcified
> hard
> tissue.
> We frequently get animal digits, particularly canine, and have to
> section the nail. Of course, this is substantially smaller than a hoof,
> but
> the material is similar. On the off chance that this might help you, I
> will
> tell you how we handle our hard tissues. For any bone or nail specimens
> we
> receive, we decalcify the specimen by soaking it in at least a 10:1 ratio
> of
> 5% nitric acid to specimen volume. We change the solution daily and
> decalcify for several hours to as long as 2 weeks depending on the tissue.
>
> Removing any unnecessary tissue is helpful for penetration. After the
> tissue
> feels soft, we paraffin process it.
> After processing and embedding, if the sample is still too hard to
> cut
> well, we face the block and soak the surface of the block on a gauze
> sponge
> soaked in 5% nitric acid solution in a closed container for several
> minutes.
> I then switch to a thick microtome blade and if I cut slowly and
> carefully, I
> can usually get several good sections. Using charged slides is usually
> necessary for the section to remain adhered to the slide during the
> staining
> process.
> Good luck hoofing it!
>
> Kim Atkin
>
> Histology Laboratory Supervisor
> Angell Memorial Animal Hospital
> 350 South Huntington Avenue
> Boston, MA 02130
>
>
> Inforamtion on cutting hard tissues
> From: ssharma@watsonpharm.com
>
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------
> ----
>
> --
>
> Hello everybody,
>
> As part of ongoing research at our company I was trying to cut uniform
> cross
> sections of bovine hooves across the horizontal plane. We recently bought
> a
> new
> sliding microtome (HM 440E, Carl Zeiss, Inc.) and were using it with a
> Tungsten-carbide knife. Unfortunately the tissue is much harder than what
> we
> expected and we were unsucessful. I was wondering if anyone out there had
> a
> similar experience with this kind of material or with some other hard
> material.
> I would be grateful if someone could give me tips about any how to cut
> hard
> materials or inform me of any softening methods used for hard keratinous
> materials.
>
> I am new to the process of microtomy and also a new addition to this list.
>
> Thanks for your time.
>
> Sanjay Sharma
>
>
>
>
>
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