Evidence map›Paper›PMID 29444158›Full record

ArticlePloS one2018

Practicable methods for histological section thickness measurement in quantitative stereological analyses.

Cyrill Matenaers, Bastian Popper, Alexandra Rieger, Rüdiger Wanke, Andreas Blutke

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in PloS one, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 11 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
11citing papers in PubMed
4.4field-weighted citation impact, top 6% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

11 citing papers in PubMed, 34 citations in OpenAlex.

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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.

Cyrill MatenaersInstitute for Veterinary Pathology at the Center for Clinical Veterinary Medicine, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Munich, Germany.
Bastian PopperDepartment of Anatomy and Cell Biology, Biomedical Center (BMC), Medical Faculty, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Martinsried, Germany.
Alexandra RiegerInstitute for Veterinary Pathology at the Center for Clinical Veterinary Medicine, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Munich, Germany.
Rüdiger WankeInstitute for Veterinary Pathology at the Center for Clinical Veterinary Medicine, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Munich, Germany.
Andreas BlutkeInstitute for Veterinary Pathology at the Center for Clinical Veterinary Medicine, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Munich, Germany.ORCID 0000-0001-7824-2681
Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München · DE

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

The accuracy of quantitative stereological analysis tools such as the (physical) disector method substantially depends on the precise determination of the thickness of the analyzed histological sections. One conventional method for measurement of histological section thickness is to re-embed the section of interest vertically to its original section plane. The section thickness is then measured in a subsequently prepared histological section of this orthogonally re-embedded sample. However, the orthogonal re-embedding (ORE) technique is quite work- and time-intensive and may produce inaccurate section thickness measurement values due to unintentional slightly oblique (non-orthogonal) positioning of the re-embedded sample-section. Here, an improved ORE method is presented, allowing for determination of the factual section plane angle of the re-embedded section, and correction of measured section thickness values for oblique (non-orthogonal) sectioning. For this, the analyzed section is mounted flat on a foil of known thickness (calibration foil) and both the section and the calibration foil are then vertically (re-)embedded. The section angle of the re-embedded section is then calculated from the deviation of the measured section thickness of the calibration foil and its factual thickness, using basic geometry. To find a practicable, fast, and accurate alternative to ORE, the suitability of spectral reflectance (SR) measurement for determination of plastic section thicknesses was evaluated. Using a commercially available optical reflectometer (F20, Filmetrics®, USA), the thicknesses of 0.5 μm thick semi-thin Epon (glycid ether)-sections and of 1-3 μm thick plastic sections (glycolmethacrylate/ methylmethacrylate, GMA/MMA), as regularly used in physical disector analyses, could precisely be measured within few seconds. Compared to the measured section thicknesses determined by ORE, SR measures displayed less than 1% deviation. Our results prove the applicability of SR to efficiently provide accurate section thickness measurements as a prerequisite for reliable estimates of dependent quantitative stereological parameters.

Indexed as

AnimalsCalibrationHistological TechniquesKidneyMiceMicroscopyMicrotomyParaffin EmbeddingPlastic EmbeddingSpectrum Analysis

Identifiers

PMID29444158
PMCPMC5812658
OpenAlexW2794025374

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.