Excellent suggestions on filling heart for better (Re: [Histonet]) mouse heart morphology

[Gayle Callis]

Filling the heart with OCT and then snap freezing is an excellent 
suggestion, and basically the same as filling mouse lungs with OCT to get 
stable, gently distended alveoli and excellent sectioning quality.

When you bisect the heart after OCT fill and snap freeze,  a room 
temperature teflon coated razor blade (EBS of Ted Pella or a teflon coated 
disposable microtome blade slices through frozen tissue/OCT smoothly, 
evenly plus the blades are very thin.   We slice frozen tissue blocks 
frequently this way, without tissue damage.

Gayle Callis

At 01:06 PM 3/7/2005, you wrote:
>David,
>
>Here is a idea based on no experience:
>
>Inject the fresh heart with OCT.  Place a landmark with ink or suture to 
>maintain orientation.
>Freeze it whole. Do either A or B
>
>A) Embed the entire heart in the desired orientation and simply trim down 
>until you reach the desired plane of section.
>
>B) Let the frozen heart warm to about -15 C. Now with a scalpel, cut it in 
>the desired plane and embed the halves to achieve the desired plane of section.
>
>As far as getting high quality frozens section slides that is quite 
>possible with good technique.
>
>Stephen
>
>
>Stephen Peters M.D.
>Pathology Innovations, LLC
>410 Old Mill Lane,
>Wyckoff, NJ 07481
>201 847 7600
>www.pathologyinnovations.com
>
>Senior Attending Pathologist
>Hackensack University Medical Center
>201 996 4836
>
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