Fixation is a critical step in the preparation of histological sections. If it is not carried out under optimal conditions or if fixation is delayed, a tissue specimen can be irreversibly damaged. No matter how much care is subsequently taken in tissue...
Varying the approach angle in stereotaxic surgery can overcome the conflict between positional accuracy and interpretability. Fortunately, modern computer controlled stereotaxic instruments make this possible.
As well as formaldehyde and glutaraldehyde, discussed previously, a number of other reagents have been used for fixation, sometimes in simple solution but often combined with other agents in the form of compound fixatives. The more important of these are...
Neuroscience researchers usually need to see slices of whole brain in order to determine the location in brain of detail they are viewing under the microscope.
This second part of the Fixation and Fixatives series covers the factors that influence the rate and effectiveness of tissue fixation as well as looking at two common fixatives: formaldehyde (histology) and glutaraldehyde (ultrastructural electron microscopy...