Squeeze
A squeeze preparation is a simple preparation used in microscopy - often in mycology - that is used to make microstructures visible.
Manufacture of the preparation
A drop of preparation solution is applied to the center of a clean slide using a glass rod or pipette. Using a dissecting needle or pointed tweezers, a tiny (!) Piece of the material (for example the lamellar fragment of a fungus) is inserted into the drop of liquid. With the needle, the object is distributed evenly in the medium and brought into the correct position. Now a cover slip is placed sideways and at an angle to the liquid drop so that the liquid wets the edge of the cover slip due to the adhesion . Then let the glass slide open slowly. Using a soft eraser, the preparation is carefully squeezed with light pressure. If the pressure is too strong or the applied specimen is too compact, the cover slip breaks very easily. The liquid that emerges at the edge of the cover glass is sucked off with an absorbent piece of paper (filter paper, tissue or the like).
medium
In the simplest case, water or physiological saline solution is used as the preparation liquid. Dyes should not be added if the intrinsic color of the object plays an important role. In order to prevent changes in the size of the applied micromaterial, glycerine additives are recommended.
lens
Any objective used in microscopy can be used. In the case of objectives with high magnification (from approx. 80 x) a drop of immersion oil is also placed on the cover glass and the corresponding immersion objective is immersed in the oil. This ensures that the light reflection on the glass surface is eliminated.
Use in mycology
In mycology (fungal science), a squeeze preparation is always appropriate when general structures of the fungal organism are to be examined (for example: hyphae , buckles , basidia , spores ). If, for example, detailed "location information" of the microstructures is required for determination processes, it is necessary to produce more complex section preparations .
Individual evidence
- ^ Rolf Mahlberg: Hematology. John Wiley & Sons, 2012, ISBN 978-3-527-66251-7 . Section 20.1.3.