Undergraduate Biology students enrolled in a course entitled Microtechnique and Its Applications are using the appropriate state-of- the-art instrumentation to enable them to successfully cut semithin (0.5-2.0 micrometer) plastic histologic sections. An LKB HistoRange Microknife Maker is being used to make glass Ralph Knives, which in turn are being used to cut tissue specimens in an LKB HistoRange Microtome. These instruments enable the students to cut semithin sections of plastic-embedded tissue specimens. The processing of plastic sections is an important advance in modern technical histology. Stained, semithin preparations provide better detail of histologic structure than can be obtained by other methods. It is important, therefore, that undergraduates learn and practice the methodologies involved in order to keep abreast of current advances in the field.
