module 3 Flashcards
what is histology
study of microscopic anatomy
what is tissue fixed with for light microscopy
4% formaldehyde in phosphate buffer that cross-links proteins so tissue does not degrade
what did we stain rat brain tissue with in lab
cresyl violet stain
how was the rat brain in lab fixed
by cardiac perfusion with 4% formaldehyde
how was the rat brain visualized in lab
light microscopy
what are the steps for surgery by perfusion fixation
- anesthetize the rat
- make lateral incision through abdominal wall
- incision in diaphragm to expose heart
- clamp sternum and place clamped sternum over the head
- pass perfusion needle through the left ventricle into ascending aorta
- make incision in right atrium to allow blood and perfusate to drain
where is the perfusion needle placed in the heart for cardiac perfusion
through left ventricle into the aorta
right atrium is cut
what is perfused in cardiac perfusion to clear the blood
ice cold saline and sodium nitrate
liver and extremities should be pale
what causes there to be tremors in the rat
perfusion with ice cold formaldehyde in a sodium phosphate buffer
fixative begins to cross link proteins and body becomes rigid
what are rat brains sectioned with after dissection
vibrating microtome and stored in fridge in buffer
how was the rat brain stored in our lab
placed in a 20% sucrose/sodium phosphate buffer at 40 degrees C until it sinks
then frozen in 2-methylbutane at -30 degrees C
what happens if the brain frozen in too hot or too cold of a temperature
too cold: brain will split
too warm: freezing too slow and ice crystals will form (look like swiss cheese)
what is the frozen brain cut with
cryostat or freezing microtome
what are the free floating tissue sections stored in
phosphate budder or cryoprotectant
how do the brain slices stick to the slides
slides are treated to give them a positive charge so that the negatively charged tissue will stick to them
what happens to the sections of brain tissue before they are stained
they are dried
what is cresyl violet
synthetic dye used to stain the cell bodies in nervous tissue purple
what type of staining is cresyl violet staining
nissl staining (stains nissl substance and nissl granules)
what structures are contained in the nissl substance and granules
nissl substance: rough ER
nissl granules: ribosomes
is RNA acidic or basic
acidic and basophillic (bas loving so binds basic dyes like cresyl violet)
what is myelin staining
luxol fast blue used to visualize fiber tracts
what is golgi staining
uses silver nitrate to stain whole neurons, including processes
only stains some, not all neurons
used to quantify the number of dendritic spines under different conditions
what are the basic steps of cresyl violet staining
- submerge in cresyl violet stain
- dehydrate in alcohol baths
- clear tissue with xylenes or histoclear
- coverslip with permount mounting medium
how are the cresyl violet stained sections observed
using bright-field light microscopy