Improved Sectioning and Berlin Blue Staining of Whole Human Brain

Barnett, Richard; Driscoll, Jonathan D.; Forrest, W. J.

doi:10.3109/10520298009067246

Cited by 8 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 5 publications

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“…One step common to many published methods for selective staining of gray matter (Mulligan 1931, Tompsett 1955, Gregg 1975, Barnett et al 1980, Suriyaprapadilok and Withyachumnarnkul 1997, Wu and Kiernan 2001 is pre-treatment with a mixture containing hot phenol (Mulligan's solution), which is used to prevent white matter staining. In our hands, brains stored in phenoxyethanol and treated with hot phenol showed significant white matter staining (Fig.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…He proposed that the phenol solution dissolved the lipids in the myelin, spread them across the white matter and that this prevented the dye from staining the ''neighboring axiscylinders and neuroglia'' (Mulligan 1931). Several subsequent staining techniques have included this hot phenol step, which is described as immersion in ''Mulligan's solution'' (Tompsett 1955, Gregg 1975, Barnett et al 1980, Suriyaprapadilok and Withyachumnarnkul 1997 and a more recent phthalocyanine dye method described by Wu and Kiernan (2001). The use of this phenol step requires extensive safety precautions, the reagents are expensive, and they must be disposed of carefully as biohazardous waste.…”

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confidence: 99%

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Selective gray matter staining of human brain slices: optimized use of cadaver materials

Loftspring

Smanik²,

Gardner³

et al. 2008

Biotechnic & Histochemistry

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We report a novel staining technique for human brain slices that distinguishes clearly gray from white matter. Previously described techniques using either Prussian blue (Berlin blue) or phthalocyanine dyes usually have included a hot phenol pretreatment to prevent white matter staining. The technique we describe here does not require hot phenol pretreatment and allows the use of brains stored for postmortem periods of one to two years prior to staining. Our technique involves staining with copper(II) phthalocyanine-tetrasulfonic acid tetrasodium salt 1% in water for 2 h followed by acetic acid treatment; this produces excellent blue staining of gray matter with little white matter staining. The stained brain slices are excellent for teaching human brain anatomy and/or pathology, or for research purposes.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Selective gray matter staining of human brain slices: optimized use of cadaver materials

Loftspring

Smanik²,

Gardner³

et al. 2008

Biotechnic & Histochemistry

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“…Prussian Blue (also called Berlin blue) coloration of brain tissue is a valuable staining procedure for macroscopic brain slices and neuroanatomical studies (Barnett et al. ). The selective gray matter staining with ferric ferrocyanide was described by Thompsett ().…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Plastination and its importance in teaching anatomy. Critical points for long‐term preservation of human tissue

Riederer

2013

Journal of Anatomy

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Most medical curricula rely on human bodies for teaching macroscopic anatomy. Over the past 20 years, plastination has become an important means of preservation of organs, for well dissected specimens or for body slices. Here, several critical points regarding body donation with legal and ethical considerations for longterm preservation, the use of cadavers in teaching and the preparation of plastinates as an additional teaching tool will be discussed. Silicone S10 is the gold standard in the preparation of plastinates. An important point to respect is the preparation of specimens, since only very well dissected body parts or excellent tissue sections should be plastinated to show the extraordinary aspects of the human anatomy. The preparation of thin and transparent sections and preservation with P40 polyester provides an additional technique to prepare resistant body slices. A selection of samples prepared by S10 and P40 are shown and compared. In addition, Prussian or Berlin blue staining of brain slices is shown to discriminate better between gray and white matter and demonstrate neuroanatomical structures. These plastinates have been used for many years in teaching first-and second-year medical students and have not lost their appeal. Students and staff appreciate the use of such plastinates. One of the advantages is that their use is not restricted to the dissection hall; slices and body parts can be used in any lecture room or in small group teaching. Therefore, ethical and legal questions need to be addressed regarding their specific use. Plastinates do not replace the traditional dissection courses, since students learn best the anatomical features of a given region by hands-on dissection and by exploratory anatomy. Furthermore, plastinates are more rigid and do not allow demonstration of hidden structures; they also become more cumbersome for endoscopy or are too rigid for demonstrating mechanical features of joints. However, although not a replacement for traditional dissections, plastination provides an additional tool for long-term preservation and for teaching human anatomy.

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“…Four, a brain is serially sectioned in the coronal and sagittal directions. Five, the brain slices are stained to make the gray and white matter more distinguishable (Roberts and Hanaway, 1969;Barnett et al, 1980;Sheehan and Hrapchak, 1980). Six, the brain slices are scanned into a computer with higher resolution.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, such serial sectioning requires expensive equipment and an extraordinary amount of time. In order to solve these problems, the brain could be serially sectioned at 3 mm minimal thickness with a meat slicer after gelatin embedding (Roberts and Hanaway, 1969;Barnett et al, 1980;Heller and Stoddard, 1986). By using a meat slicer, the brain slices could easily be made with satisfactory quality.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Method for preparing permanent brain slices and serial slice images for education and MRI correlation

Hwang

Chung

Park³

2006

Anat. Rec.

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It is important to understand the anatomical structures of the human brain in horizontal planes. Serially sectioned brain slices can easily be made with a meat slicer. The objective of this research was to enhance the educational value of serial brain slices made with a meat slicer through various applications. Two brains were taken out of two cadavers and embedded with gelatin solution to make two brain blocks. The first brain block was serially sectioned at 5 mm thickness using a meat slicer to make 28 horizontal brain slices. Each brain slice was embedded with a synthetic resin mixture to make 28 permanent specimens. The second brain block was magnetic resonance-scanned at 1.4 mm thickness to make 130 horizontal magnetic resonance images, then serially sectioned at the same thickness using the meat slicer to make 130 horizontal brain slices. Each brain slice was scanned into a computer to make a series of slice images. Ten anatomical structures in the slice images were outlined to make segmented images. Corresponding magnetic resonance images, slice images, and segmented images were stacked and volume-reconstructed to make three-dimensional images, which were sectioned and rotated at free angles. We show that the serial brain slices made with a meat slicer can be permanently preserved and used in a variety of educational settings. Anat Rec (Part B: New Anat) 289B:64 -71, 2006.

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Improved Sectioning and Berlin Blue Staining of Whole Human Brain

Cited by 8 publications

References 5 publications

Selective gray matter staining of human brain slices: optimized use of cadaver materials

Selective gray matter staining of human brain slices: optimized use of cadaver materials

Plastination and its importance in teaching anatomy. Critical points for long‐term preservation of human tissue

Method for preparing permanent brain slices and serial slice images for education and MRI correlation

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