Method for producing tissue microarray blocks

摘要

A method and apparatus are provided for forming high-yield tissue microarray blocks capable of producing 1,000 or more replicate slides. In one embodiment, a plurality of donor tissue samples are minced and suspended in separate molten liquid carriers to form a plurality of separate two-phase mixtures of solid minced tissue and molten wax. Each of the two-phase mixtures is preferably formed into elongated columns and transferred into a separate well of a microarray block. A method and apparatus are provided for forming the elongated molten wax columns with minced tissue evenly distributed along the length of each column. The apparatus for forming the array includes an extrusion mechanism for transferring the columns of two-phase mixtures into the deep wells of the microarray block. The two-phase mixture may alternately be cooled and allowed to solidify before being transferred into the microarray block. An alternate embodiment is provided wherein cell cultures are utilized as starting material as opposed to solid donor tissue samples.

主权项

1. A method for use with a plurality of animal or human donor tissue samples and a paraffin recipient block provided with a plurality of wells each having a cross-sectional size and shape to form a high yield tissue microarray block, comprising the steps of:
cutting each one of said plurality of animal or human donor tissue samples into a plurality of tissue sample fragments, suspending each plurality of tissue sample fragments in a separate liquid carrier to form a two phase mixture of solid tissue sample fragments and liquid carrier for each plurality of tissue sample fragments, compacting each of said two phase mixtures of solid tissue sample fragments and liquid carrier into a chamber to take the form of a column for use in a high yield tissue microarray block, and transferring each of said columns from the chamber into at least one of said plurality of wells of said paraffin recipient block to create the high yield tissue microarray block, the chamber having a cross-sectional size and shape approximating the cross-sectional size and shape of the at least one of said plurality of wells, the length of each of said columns being independent of the size of the respective donor tissue sample.