PREPARATION OF ANATOMICAL MUSEUM SPECIMENS BY USING COMMERCIAL RESIN AND LIQUID SILICONE
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Date
2022
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KARNATAKA VETERINARY, ANIMAL AND FISHERIES SCIENCES UNIVERSITY, BIDAR
Abstract
The objective of present study was to compare different gross staining
techniques for brain slices, to standardize the sheet plastination using commercially
available resins and preparation of corrosion cast. Three brain staining methods were
performed, brain slices were pre stained with different stains like Mulligan’s stain,
Alston’s stain and Prussian blue stain to differentiate between grey and white matter.
Desirable results were obtained in all the three staining techniques. Upon comparison
it was found that Alston’s method of staining was more satisfactory than Mulligan’s
and Prussian blue staining. The pre-stained brain slices were used for sheet
plastination process using Epoxy resin, Polyester Resin and Polyurethane resin.
Among these low setting Epoxy resin did not reacted with the stained brain tissues
and produced good quality plastinates in which internal structure of grey matter was
well differentiated. For corrosion casts Epoxy resin, Polyester resin, Liquid silicon
and Polyurethane foam were used for vascular casts and luminal casts of organs. For
vascular casts, Polyester resin was good because of its low viscosity and better
perfusion in the capillary network. Major drawback of the Polyester resin was its
brittleness in the presence of moisture and vascular casts were crumbled upon
handling. However Epoxy resin corrosion casts were stronger and durable. For
luminal casting of hollow organs Polyurethane foam yielded better results specially to
reproduce air sacs in birds. Resins used in the present study were non-patented, less
expensive and easily available. The choice of suitable casting material was
determined by a variety of factors, such as viscosity of the resin, setting time or
working time and reaction temperature.
Key words: Sheet plastination, Corrosion cast, Resin, Brain slice staining.