Hello all -

   I am a developmental biologisy and need a recommendation, to help me
choose the right embedding medium. First and simplest, does anyone have a
replacement for JB4 that is less toxic? I need something that is transparent
(so that I can orient my embryos during embedding), and that I will cut with
a vibratome later to make 20 micron sections. I currently use JB4 to section
embryos after wholemount immunohistochemistry or in situ hybridization but I
need something that is less toxic.
   Second, I'm looking for a medium that meets the following criteria. I
need to be able to embed soft tissues (frog and chick embryos) for
sectioning via vibratome (10 microns to 60 microns thick). Unlike with the
JB4, I want to do immunohistochemistry on these sections after cutting (but
do not need electron microscopy). The embedding medium also needs to be
 
1) non-toxic (so that a fume hood is not needed during embedding)
2) solidifies into a block that can be cut with vibratome, but not so hard
that I can't trim it later with a razor blade
3) is transparent, so that I can orient embryos while embedding

   Can anyone suggest any kind of embedding mix that matches this
description? Please email me at mlevin@forsyth.org. Thank you in advance!

Mike



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