It's always interesting to see different people's everyday techniques. I hold tiny samples still with pva glue but that's not water soluble so I cope with non-light-transparent pieces of glue on my temporary slides. I can make very thin sections that way successfully. - ThreadSky

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fayrnhawk.bsky.social • 49 days ago

It's always interesting to see different people's everyday techniques. I hold tiny samples still with pva glue but that's not water soluble so I cope with non-light-transparent pieces of glue on my temporary slides. I can make very thin sections that way successfully.

Reposted from Peter Braubach

Getting ready for microscopy in the next nights - a final drop of PEG for the #lichen samples 🔬.

Comments

peterbraubach.bsky.social•49 days ago

I will definitely try PVA. Sometimes PEG is too soft, the tenacious PVA will probably have some advantages there.

fayrnhawk.bsky.social•49 days ago

There was an article by John Skinner in the BLS Bulletin a few years back. He used an artists' product but I've never tried it. I think that product dissolved in water.

larkinlichen.bsky.social•49 days ago

It was Gum Arabic - the article is on the BLS site in the microscopy section (link below). I’ve tried Gum Tragacanth (as I had some already) and I’ve used PVA quite a bit, and liked it, but have moved to using PEG (2000) as it’s much faster to solidify. https://britishlichensociety.org.uk/sites/default/files/files/Sectioning%20-%20John%20Skinner.pdf

larkinlichen.bsky.social•49 days ago

Incidentally, I’ve found that PVA does dissolve somewhat, and it will then move off to a bit of tissue. But I haven’t used any of them enough to be sure which I prefer. I just found the wait-time with PVA or gum meant I’d often want to move onto the next shiny thing before it was set.

fayrnhawk.bsky.social•49 days ago

Thanks for remembering that John's article is on the BLS website @larkinlichen.bsky.social Wait time can be an issue. For me, it signals time for a cup of tea!

fayrnhawk.bsky.social•49 days ago

It holds things well. Cuts well with a fine razorback. It doesn't impregnate or change the specimen. But the fragments of glue allow no light through giving black mess in the background. It does normally come away from the specimen when mounted in water. Worth a try.

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