Quantitation of shrinkage during preparation for scanning electron microscopy: Human lung

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Abstract
Human lung tissue is found to shrink considerably with preparation for SEM. Fifty‐one blocks of glutar‐aldehyde‐fixed and inflated lung, approximately 2.5 cm × 2.5 cm × 1 cm, shrank a mean of 19% (± 4.0% SD) linear dimension through post fixation, dehydration and critical point drying. Shrinkage with fixation was not measured. Blocks of lung were observed to shrink equally in length (L) and width (W), L = 19.4% ± 2.7 SD, W = 19.0% ± 4.0 SD. Final shrinkage was the same whether samples were dehydrated in acetone or ethanol, although with acetone more of the shrinkage occurred during the dehydration process and less occurred during critical point drying.
Funding Information
  • Office of Health Research of the U.S. Department of Energy (DE-AC03-76SF00098)
  • California Research and Medical Education Fund of the American Lung Association of California