It Isn't That Hard! Processing, Embedding and Sectioning Undecalcified Bone in Your Lab

Course overview

"Creating sections of undecalcified bone is a specialty subsection of histology that many labs feel might be out of their reach. With established protocols for processing, embedding, and sectioning plus the right equipment that you may already have, or can buy or borrow, you can offer this service to your 'customers', whether they be MD's in a hospital or research investigators in business or academia. Exclusively utilizing poly methyl methacrylate as the embedding medium, our lab has established a booklet for conducting bone histomorphometry for our mouse studies at the University of Michigan's Integrated Musculoskeletal Health Core Center. This booklet, Histology Assessment Core - Bone Histomorphometry, is the coalition of a wealth of knowledge from our research lab and many of our colleagues in the field. It can be used as a basis for processing other types or species of undecalcified bone, including human. This session will review the chapters from Tissue Processing to Staining, provide photos of certain techniques and results, and leave time at the end for questions and networking. If time allows, a brief presentation on sectioning undecalcified bone embedded in OCT using the Kawamoto tape transfer method will be given.