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Fixation and Sectioning

Fixation and Sectioning

Two basic types of preparation are used to visualize specimens with a light microscope: wet mounts and fixed specimens.
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...

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Apr 30, 2026

Highly-Multiplexed Tissue Imaging with Raman Dyes

Highly-Multiplexed Tissue Imaging with Raman Dyes

Published on: April 21, 2022

Mouse tissue fixation.

Robert D Cardiff¹, Claramae H Miller, Robert J Munn

¹Center for Comparative Medicine and Center for Genomic Pathology, University of California, Davis, Davis, California 95616.

Cold Spring Harbor Protocols

|May 3, 2014

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Proper tissue fixation is crucial to halt postmortem degradation, preserving cellular detail and nucleic acid integrity. This guide covers essential fixation procedures, fixative selection, and sample handling for optimal results.

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Area of Science:

Histology
Biochemistry

Background:

Postmortem degradation, including autolysis and putrefaction, rapidly compromises tissue morphology and nucleic acid integrity.
Temperature significantly accelerates these degradation processes, emphasizing the need for prompt intervention.

Purpose of the Study:

To outline basic tissue fixation procedures.
To provide guidance on selecting appropriate fixatives, optimizing fixation timing and duration, and ensuring proper sample storage and quality.

Main Methods:

Fixatives halt postmortem changes through cross-linking, coagulation, or combined mechanisms.
The article reviews fundamental tissue fixation techniques.

Main Results:

Effective fixation stops autolysis and putrefaction, preserving morphologic and cytological details.
Proper fixation is essential for maintaining nucleic acid integrity.

Conclusions:

Choosing the right fixative and adhering to optimal fixation protocols are critical for successful tissue preservation.
Guidance on sample storage and quality control further enhances the reliability of fixation outcomes.