Methods In Light Microscopy Flashcards
Define a tissue
- A collection of cells specialised for s particular function
- Aggregations of tissues constitute organs
Name the different types of biopsy techniques
- Smear
- Curettage
- Needle
- Direct Incision
- Endoscopic
- Transvascular
Which biopsy technique would you use to take a sample of tissue from the uterus?
Curettage
How could you take a tissue sample from the heart?
Transvascular biopsy
What is the size of a red blood cell?
7μm
What size are are the majority of cells?
10-20μm
What could you use a needle biopsy for?
Collect tissue from breast, brain, liver kidney or muscle
What are the two main fixatives used to fix biopsies?
- Glutaraldehyde
- Formaldehyde
What are shrinkage artefacts?
Abnormalities in the final slide that occur due to the dehydration and rehydration of the sample
What is used to stain acidic compounds of cells? (e.g. Nucleus)
- HAEMATOXYLIN
- Stains purple/blue
What is Eosin used to stain?
- BASIC compounds e.g. Cytoplasmic proteins and extracellular fibres
- Stains PINK
What is Periodic Acid Schiff (PAS) used for?
Stains carbohydrates and glycoproteins MAGENTA
What is phase contrast?
Method of microscopy which uses the interference effects of 2 combining light waves to enhance the image of UNSTAINED cells
What method can be used to view live and UNSTAINED samples?
Dark field
Describe the method of confocal imaging and its advantages
- Tissue is labelled with one or more fluorescent probes and a spatial pinhole is placed at the confocal end of the lens
- Eliminates “out of focus” flare and allows a 3D image of living specimens
