[Histonet] intestines fixation

[Claude M Nagamine]

I'm looking for tumors in the small and large intestines of mice.  I've been
inflating the intestines with formalin immediately after removal to prevent
autolysis.  It also stretches the intestines making them easier to cut open
and, if things work well, flushes the lumen.  However, there are often "tight"
constricted areas that do not inflate or flush.  I was thinking that
things would be simple if the intestines were flaccid in the first place.

Does anyone have a technique to relax the intestines prior to flushing with
formalin?  

Claude Nagamine
MIT, Div. Comp. Medicine
Cambridge, MA