Simple Technique to Facilitate Tissue Sampling for Electron Microscopy

The need to examine certain components of a specimen with the electron microscope is frequently recognized only after study of the paraffin sections, by which time the total specimen has usually been fixed in Formalin. Such specimens are frequently large, with the result that representative samples for electron microscopy may be difficult to isolate. A simple, quick, and inexpensive method for overcoming this sampling problem is described. This technique is best employed in laboratories that routinely use a single tissue fixative suitable for both light and electron microscopy. The specimen is taken direct from the Formalin, and very thin slices are prepared by hand with a blade, stained with methylene blue, and examined in the wet state under the microscope. On identification, representative tissue is removed by microdissection and processed further for electron microscopy.