Pawlicki R
Stain Technol. 1976 May;51(3):147-52. doi: 10.3109/10520297609116690.
A method is described for preparing fossil bone specimens for scanning electron microscopy. To obtain bone surfaces suitable for study, material was embedded in Epon 812 and selected faces exposed by grinding were subjected to controlled etching with a 4:1 mixture of 5% HNO3 and 1% OsO4. Surfaces thus prepared were further processed by the so-called clearing replicas technique. As a result of this procedure the bone surfaces revealed a network of anastomosing vascular canals the innter surface of whose walls could be examined in the scanning electron microscope. By etching extremely thin ground sections of bone stuck to plastic tape the contents of vascular canals as well as osteocytes can be isolated. This method ensures the good preservation of spatial relations between bone elements essential for studies of fossil bones, which are sometimes very brittle.
描述了一种制备用于扫描电子显微镜的化石骨标本的方法。为了获得适合研究的骨表面，将材料嵌入Epon 812中，通过研磨暴露的选定面用5%硝酸和1%四氧化锇的4:1混合物进行可控蚀刻。如此制备的表面通过所谓的透明复制品技术进一步处理。通过该程序，骨表面显示出相互吻合的血管通道网络，其管壁的内表面可在扫描电子显微镜下检查。通过蚀刻粘贴在塑料带上的极薄骨磨片，可以分离血管通道的内容物以及骨细胞。这种方法确保了对研究化石骨至关重要的骨成分之间空间关系的良好保存，而化石骨有时非常脆弱。
