[Histonet] curling on cryostat brain sections and other issues

[Merced Leiker]

I make 8um-thick sections of various tissues and sometimes they do curl. I 
do not use an anti-roll plate. So what I do while making the section is to 
cut just enough of the section so that it is attached by a very small 
amount to the top of the block, (so that most of the block has gone down 
below the blade and won't interfere when you pick up the section with your 
slide). The free end of the section will still curl; however, you only have 
this end to deal with since the other is fixed! I use my brushes to flatten 
out this edge as much as possible, then quickly place the slide on it 
before it starts curling up again. It usually will curl up rather slowly 
after having its edges "brushed", giving me plenty of time.  Sometimes it 
stays flat and doesn't curl at all. But remember this is 8-um sections, not 
15um.

Merced


--On Tuesday, March 17, 2009 12:18 PM -0400 Guillermo Palchik 
<gp62 <@t> georgetown.edu> wrote:

> Hi there,
> I am having  problems with my brain sections  (15 um - flash-frozen)
> curling up once I remove the antiroll plate on my cryostat... does
> anyone know how i can prevent this?
> Also - does anybody have a "quick guide" on what to improve while
> cutting, based on the damage seen on the brain slice: for example I
> heard that if there are vertical lines along the slice, it might mean  a
> nick in the blade, that cracking of the tissue might be cutting with  the
> blade too perpendicular, and so on... i am looking for a general
> troubleshooting guide for cryostat cutting...
> thanks
> Gil
>
> --
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Merced M Leiker
Research Technician II
354 Biomedical Research Building
School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
State University of New York at Buffalo
3435 Main St, Buffalo, NY 14214
Ph: (716) 829-6033
Fx: (716) 829-2725

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