Mouritzen Dam A
J Hirnforsch. 1979;20(2):115-9.
The purpose of this study was to measure the shrinkage of the brain during fixation and the subsequent histological procedures. In neuropathology formaldehyde solutions are the most common fixative, but different concentrations are used. This may lead to uncertainty in connection with quantitative comparative studies, because of the possibility of different degrees of shrinkage. Three groups of five brains each were fixed in three different formaldehyde solutions containing 4% buffered solution, 10% and 12% solutions without additives, respectively. The further procedure to the final histological preparation was the same in all groups. The total shrinkage in volume was 48%, with no significant difference between the three groups. A significant difference appears in relation to the duration of fixation in the most concentrated formaldehyde solution. In all three groups the shrinkage due to the fixation was more than half of the total shrinkage. Finally, it is concluded that comparative quantitative studies on brains can be performed without regard to the technique after fixation in any of the concentrations of formaldehyde investigated.
本研究的目的是测量大脑在固定过程以及随后的组织学处理过程中的收缩情况。在神经病理学中，甲醛溶液是最常用的固定剂，但使用的浓度不同。由于存在不同程度收缩的可能性，这可能导致定量比较研究存在不确定性。三组，每组五个大脑，分别固定在三种不同的甲醛溶液中，即含4%缓冲溶液、10%和12%无添加剂溶液。所有组进一步进行最终组织学制备的步骤相同。总体积收缩率为48%，三组之间无显著差异。在最浓的甲醛溶液中，固定时间存在显著差异。在所有三组中，固定导致的收缩超过总收缩的一半。最后得出结论，在研究的任何浓度甲醛中固定后，对大脑进行比较定量研究时无需考虑固定技术。
