logo
logo
Sign in

Microtomes; Tools Used To Cut Thin Slices of Biological Specimen for Microscopic Examination

avatar
Pooja salve
Microtomes; Tools Used To Cut Thin Slices of Biological Specimen for Microscopic Examination

Microtomy is used to cut bones, tissues, and biological specimens into thin slices/sections, for microscopic examination, with the help of microtomes. Microtomes can also be used in various research, clinical, and industrial applications to obtain sample sections, and there are various types of microtomes such as saw microtome, vibrating microtome, sledge microtome, rotary microtome, ultra microtome, cryomicrotome and others are available in the market. Of these, rotary microtomes are commonly used in histology laboratories. A rotary microtome is an ideal instrument for research, diagnosis, and routine use.


Its blades can cut sections from one to 60 microns thick and have a knob to adjust the thickness. The tissue block is drawn through the knife edge to be sliced. To achieve the best results, the tissue block should be horizontal and parallel to the surface of the cutting knife, and the blade’s edge must be at least one mm thick on all sides. A rotary microtome is used for large numbers of serial sections. It is a heavy instrument with a fixed knife beneath which an object is sliced. The specimen is held on a sliding base. The feed mechanism rotates the rotary knife beneath the specimen. For thin sections, the rotary microtome is the preferred choice.


A microtome is used in histology, pathology, and morphology. The scientist places paraffin-embedded tissue blocks into the holder. The paraffin makes it easier to cut through different types of tissues. The scientists control the microtome and slide the material holder against the cutting blade. The blade slices the tissue into strips that are one to four micrometers thick. These segments are then stained and added to a microscope slide. There are several different kinds of microtomes, each of which is used to section different types of tissue. A typical knife-block microtome has a changeable blade and a specimen holder.


Read more- https://bit.ly/3CfiCny

collect
0
avatar
Pooja salve
guide
Zupyak is the world’s largest content marketing community, with over 400 000 members and 3 million articles. Explore and get your content discovered.
Read more