Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 24, 2026

Cryosectioning and Immunostaining Mouse Inner Ear Tissue: From Embryonic to Adult Stages
Published on: April 11, 2025
Method for removal of samples of ear canal and tympanic membrane for histologic and immunhistochemical study
João Daniel Caliman e Gurgel1, Celina Siqueira Barbosa Pereira, José Humberto Tavares Guerreiro Fregnani
1School of Medical Sciences of the Santa Casa de São Paulo.
Unlabelled:
Temporal bones are valuable resources to study ear diseases. Although there are several methods for removing temporal bones from cadavers, such methods are not usually described in enough details in experimental research papers.
Objectives:
To describe a simple and rapid method for ear canal and tympanic membrane removal, and to evaluate its viability for histologic and immunohistochemical studies.
Materials And Methods:
In this experimental study, we obtained 31 ear canal and tympanic membrane samples from cadavers, with a conventional power drill and plug cutter. The material was dissected and samples containing ear canals and tympanic membranes were obtained in blocks. The samples were analyzed by histology and immunohistochemistry.
Results:
Removal of small and good quality samples containing entire ear canals and tympanic membranes. In all the samples, it was possible to perform both histological and immunohistochemical analyses.
Conclusion:
This method was easily achievable, reproducible and yielded good quality samples, both for training purposes and for experimental research. All the samples were viable for histological and immunohistochemical analyses.
Related Concept Videos
Fixation and Sectioning
The simplest type of preparation is the wet mount, in which the specimen is placed in a drop of liquid on the slide. A liquid specimen can be directly deposited on the slide using a dropper. Solid specimens, such as skin scraping, can be placed on the slide before adding a drop of liquid to prepare the wet mount. Sometimes the liquid is simply water, but stains are often added...
Preparation of Samples for Electron Microscopy

