An Oriented Plastic Slicing Guide for Facilitating Stereotaxic Interpretations in Brain Sections

Abstract

A rigid plastic cutting guide for whole brains in which the interior conforms to the contours of the interior base of the cranial cavity was molded from plastic that sets at room temperature. The mold was poured in a glass staining dish surrounding a wax-coated plaster cast of the floor of the skull. Both the casting and the molding processes were carried out in a stereotaxic apparatus to insure proper alignment. The molded box supports the brain in correct stereotaxic alignment, and vertical slits sawed at 5 mm intervals along the width of the box allow the passage of a blade through the brain. The resulting tissue slabs are of uniform thickness and can be easily correlated with the coronal planes shown in stereotaxic atlases. This inexpensive cutting device reduces the number of thin sections lost between tissue blocks, an important consideration when tracking degenerating nerves.