Psalm 139:14

I praise you because I am fearfully

and wonderfully made; Your works
are wonderful, I know that full well.
 Zoo 302 - Basic Histology

Objective:
- understand microanatomy of cells,
tissues, and organs.
- correlate structure and function
 Tissue Preparation

1. Fixation – 10% formalin, 4% aqueous

solution of formaldehyde
2. Washing-water
3. Dehydration – alcohols in ascending
concentration
4. De-alcoholization – clearing, xylol or toluene
5. Embedding – paraffin blocks
 Fixatives
1. Aldehydes
2. Mercurials
3. Alcohols
4. Oxidizing agents
5. Picrates
 6. Microtome, sectioning – thin slices 1-10
um
 7. Mount – adhesive
 8. Staining – paraffin dissolved with xylol
then rehydrated with alcohol (descending
conc.)

 E.g. Hematoxylin-eosin
 9. Coverslip – Canada balsam
 Stains
 Basic/Cationic dyes
 -azures
 -metachromasia
 Acidic/Anionic dyes
 Mixed dyes
 Special stains
 Light Microscope versus
Electron Microscope
 Light microscopy  Electron microscopy
 Transillumination  Electrons and tissue
 Resolving power parts
 0.1 um  0.1nm

 1- 10 um  .02-0.1um

 Microtome  Diamond knives

 Dye  Heavy metals

 Microtubules – present in centrioles, basal
bodies, cilia, flagella
 Centrioles function as organizing centers
for mitotic spindles
 Gland Classification
 1. Number of cells
 a. unicellular
 b. multicellular
 2. Secretory products leave the cell
 a. merocrine
 b. holocrine
 c. apocrine
 Gland Cllassification
 3. Connection with surface epithelium
 a. exocrine
 b. endocrine
 Junctional Complexes
 1. Zonula occludens – tight junction
 2. Zonula adherens
 3. Desmosome – macula adherens
 4. Gap junction
 5. hemidesmosome