Miko T L, Gschmeissner S E
Armauer Hansen Research Institute, All Africa Leprosy Rehabilitation and Training Center, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Biotech Histochem. 1994 Mar;69(2):68-77. doi: 10.3109/10520299409106264.
Although there are many histological techniques for assessing myelin sheaths and axons in paraffin embedded or frozen sections of the peripheral nervous system, modern approaches usually use plastic embedded material. Although plastic embedding is superior for small cutaneous branches, this method has limited value for histological assessment of nerve trunks. We report three methods which together yield a comprehensive approach for thorough and detailed investigation of human nerve trunks. The rapid osmication method permitted assessment of myelinated nerve fibers from frozen sections at operation, thus providing the surgeon with guidance on the extent of nerve resection. The modification presented here resulted in permanent slides, allowing comparison of results with those of the other two procedures. The new osmium-hematoxylin technique could be performed on paraffin embedded nerves. Paraffin, unlike plastic, permitted the study of the whole cross sectional area of the nerve in single sections. Moreover, the sharp image of the myelin permitted computerized morphometry. The significantly modified axonal silver impregnation technique was performed on frozen sections mounted on glass slides, as opposed to the time-consuming impregnation of free-floating sections. The latter technique had a high success rate and permitted semiquantitative assessment of axons in nerve trunks. These methods can be performed in any routine histology laboratory and resulted in greater accuracy compared to conventional methods.
尽管有许多组织学技术可用于评估外周神经系统石蜡包埋或冰冻切片中的髓鞘和轴突，但现代方法通常使用塑料包埋材料。虽然塑料包埋对于小的皮支来说更具优势，但这种方法对神经干的组织学评估价值有限。我们报告了三种方法，这些方法共同构成了一种全面的方法，用于对人类神经干进行彻底而详细的研究。快速锇酸固定法可在手术时对冰冻切片中的有髓神经纤维进行评估，从而为外科医生提供神经切除范围的指导。这里介绍的改进方法制成了永久切片，便于将结果与其他两种方法的结果进行比较。新的锇酸-苏木精技术可用于石蜡包埋的神经。与塑料不同，石蜡允许在单张切片中研究神经的整个横截面积。此外，髓鞘清晰的图像便于进行计算机形态测量。显著改进的轴突银浸染技术是在安装在载玻片上的冰冻切片上进行的，而不是对游离漂浮切片进行耗时的浸染。后一种技术成功率高，可对神经干中的轴突进行半定量评估。这些方法可以在任何常规组织学实验室进行，并且与传统方法相比具有更高的准确性。
