Related Experiment Video For Autopsy
Updated: Feb 3, 2026
Symmetric Bihemispheric Postmortem Brain Cutting to Study Healthy and Pathological Brain Conditions in Humans
Published on: December 18, 2016
Evaluating cellularity and structural connectivity on whole brain slides using a custom-made digital pathology
Thomas Roetzer1, Konrad Leskovar2, Nadine Peter1
1Institute of Neurology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
Aims:
In brain research, the histopathological examination of coronar whole-brain slides provides important insights into spatial disease characteristics. Regarding brain tumor research, this enables visualization of tumor heterogeneity, infiltration patterns and the relationship with the surrounding brain parenchyma. The precise correlation between radiological imaging and post-mortem brains is of special interest.
New Method:
We developed a wide-field slide scanner, comprising a microscope, a high-precision remotely controllable x-y-stage, a camera and a computer workstation, for automatically scanning uncommonly large formats. We analyzed whole brain slides of three patients and constructed cellularity heatmaps and fiber tract maps using a custom-made image processing pipeline.
Results:
The obtained cellularity heatmaps allow for distinguishing compact tumor (5714 ± 1786 cells/mm², mean ± standard deviation) from white matter (3581 ± 828 cells/mm²) and grey matter (2473 ± 716 cells/mm²). Compared to magnetic resonance imaging, the proposed histopathological work-up (i) reveals a larger zone of tumor infiltration around the compact tumor areas and (ii) shows how pre-existing tracts are displaced by the tumor bulk. Moreover, we highlight differences in the histological tumor growth pattern of two different radiological progression subtypes.
Comparison With Existing Method(S):
Compared to existing (commercial) solutions, our slide scanning solution is adaptable and cost-efficient. Moreover, we showcase potential clinical applications by mapping whole brain histology to magnetic resonance imaging.
Conclusions:
We herein provide instructions on how to (i) construct a custom-built slide scanner capable of scanning arbitrary slide formats, (ii) automatically evaluate the cell density and (iii) perform fiber tracking on whole brain slides.
More Related Videos
08:23A Multimodal Imaging- and Stimulation-based Method of Evaluating Connectivity-related Brain Excitability in Patients with Epilepsy
Published on: November 13, 2016
08:37Focused Ultrasound Induced Blood-Brain Barrier Opening for Targeting Brain Structures and Evaluating Chemogenetic Neuromodulation
Published on: December 22, 2020
Related Concept Videos
01:18Design Example: Designing Water Slide
Bernoulli's principle determines the water's velocity along the slide....
01:23Dietary Connections
01:11Introduction to Connective Tissues
01:30Classification of Connective Tissues
Connective Tissue Proper
Connective tissue proper is the most abundant class of connective tissues. As its name implies, it predominantly connects different tissues in the body. Depending on the cell types, ground substance, viscosity, and fiber types in the ECM, connective tissue proper is further categorized into loose and dense....
01:20Embryonic Connective Tissues
The mesenchyme is the first connective tissue that emerges in the developing embryo. It consists of loosely arranged multipotent mesenchymal cells and reticular fibers in the extracellular matrix. This loose arrangement allows easy migration of cells, which is essential for germ layer positioning, patterning, and organ morphogenesis during embryonic development.
01:13Dense Connective Tissue
Dense Regular Connective Tissue
In dense regular connective tissue, fibers are arranged parallel to each other, enhancing its tensile strength and resistance to stretching in the direction of the fiber orientations. Ligaments and tendons are made of dense regular...