A note on slide-mounting technique of unfed immature stages of Amblyomma cajennense (Fabricius, 1787) (Acari: Ixodidae)

Famadas, Kátia Maria; Serra-Freire, Nicolau Maués; Faccini, João Luíz Horácio

doi:10.1590/s0074-02761996000100026

Cited by 11 publications

(6 citation statements)

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“…68-70;Nye 1947;Salmon 1947;Essig 1948;Lambers 1950;Wagstaffe & Fidler 1955, pp. 177-178;Richards 1964;Lersten 1967;Singer 1967;Wirth & Marston 1968;Eastop & Emden 1972, p. 4;Mound & Pitkin 1972;Barbosa 1974;Gardner 1975;Rusek 1975;Martin 1978Martin , 1999Bink 1979;Noyes 1982;Pritchard & Kruse 1982;Thatcher 1987;Wilkey 1990;Saito et al 1993;Upton 1993;Amrine & Manson 1996;Famadas et al 1996;Brown & Boise 2005Faraji & Bakker 2008). Supposedly, "the use of cold caustic over a more or less prolonged period gives more uniform results than relatively short immersion in hot or boiling caustic" (Hardwick 1950, p. 231).…”

Section: Chemical Macerationmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Collection management and study of microscope slides: Storage, profiling, deterioration, restoration procedures, and general recommendations

Neuhaus

Schmid

Riedel

2017

Zootaxa

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A wide range of aspects concerning microscope slides, their preparation, long-time storage, curatorial measures in collections, deterioration, restoration, and study is summarized based on our own data and by analyzing more than 600 references from the 19th century until 2016, 15 patents, and about 100 Materials Safety Data Sheets. Information from systematic zoology, conservation sciences, chemistry, forensic sciences, pathology, paleopathology, applied sciences like food industry, and most recent advances in digital imaging are put together in order to obtain a better understanding of which and possibly why mounting media and coverslip seals deteriorate, how slides can be salvaged, which studies may be necessary to identify a range of ideal mounting media, and how microscope studies can benefit from improvements in developmental biology and related fields. We also elaborate on confusing usage of concepts like that of maceration and of clearing. The chemical ingredients of a range of mounting media and coverslip seals are identified as much as possible from published data, but this information suffers in so far as the composition of a medium is often proprietary of the manufacturer and may vary over time. Advantages, disadvantages, and signs of deterioration are documented extensively for these media both from references and from our own observations. It turns out that many media degrade within a few years, or decades at the latest, except Canada balsam with a documented life-time of 150 years, Euparal with a documented life-time of 50 years, and glycerol-paraffin mounts sealed with Glyceel, which represents almost the only non-deteriorating and easily reversible mount. Deterioration reveals itself as a yellowing in natural resins and as cracking, crystallization, shrinkage on drying or possibly on loss of a plasticizer, detachment of the coverslip, segregation of the ingredients in synthetic polymers, as well as continued maceration of a specimen to a degree that the specimen virtually disappears. Confusingly, decay does not always appear equally within a collection of slides mounted at the same time in the same medium. The reasons for the deteriorative processes have been discussed but are controversial especially for gum-chloral media. Comparing data from conservation sciences, chemical handbooks, and documented ingredients, we discuss here how far chemical and physical deterioration probably are inherent to many media and are caused by the chemical and physical properties of their components and by chemicals dragged along from previous preparation steps like fixation, chemical maceration, and physical clearing. Some recipes even contain a macerating agent, which proceeds with its destructive work. We provide permeability data for oxygen and water vapor of several polymers contained in mounting media and coverslip seals. Calculation of the penetration rate of moisture in one example reveals that water molecules reach a specimen within a few days up to about a month; this lays to rest extensive discussions about the permanent protection of a mounted specimen by a mounting medium and a coverslip seal. Based on the ever growing evidence of the unsuitable composition and application of many, and possibly almost all, mounting media, we strongly encourage changing the perspective on microscope slides from immediate usability and convenience of preparation towards durability and reversibility, concepts taken from conservation sciences. Such a change has already been suggested by Upton (1993) more than 20 years ago for gum-chloral media, but these media are still encouraged nowadays by scientists. Without a new perspective, taxonomic biology will certainly lose a large amount of its specimen basis for its research within the next few decades. Modern non-invasive techniques like Raman spectroscopy may help to identify mounting media and coverslip seals on a given slide as well as to understand ageing of the media. An outlook is given on potential future studies. In order to improve the situation of existing collections of microscope slides, we transfer concepts as per the Smithsonian Collections Standards and Profiling System, developed for insect collections more than 25 years ago, to collections of slides. We describe historical and current properties and usage of glass slides, coverslips, labels, and adhesives under conservational aspects. In addition, we summarize and argue from published and our own experimental information about restorative procedures, including re-hydration of dried-up specimens previously mounted in a fluid medium. Alternatives to microscope slides are considered. We also extract practical suggestions from the literature concerning microscope equipment, cleaning of optical surfaces, health risks of immersion oil, and recent improvements of temporary observation media especially in connection with new developments in digital software.

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Section: Chemical Macerationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In addition, phenol renders specimens supple with their appendages expanded (Spence 1940d;Fox 1942;Wirth & Marston 1968;Berland 1984;Famadas et al 1996;Brown 1997, p. 8). Opposite to xylene, cedarwood oil is also supposed not to harden specimens (Pritchard & Kruse 1982, p. 122).…”

Section: Physical Clearingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Collection management and study of microscope slides: Storage, profiling, deterioration, restoration procedures, and general recommendations

Neuhaus

Schmid

Riedel

2017

Zootaxa

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“…The terminology follows Clifford & Anastos (1960) for larval idiosomal chaetotaxy and Famadas et al (1997) Material preparation: Twenty unfed larvae were prepared and measured according to Famadas et al (1996) and the larval drawings were made under a Zeiss MC80DX light microscope. Twenty unfed nymphs and five unfed females were measured under a Leica MZ12 stereomicroscope.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Description of the immature stages and redescription of the female of Ixodes schulzei Aragão & Fonseca, 1951 (Acari: Ixodidae), an endemic tick species of Brazil

et al. 2007

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Ixodes schulzei Aragão & Fonseca, 1951 is a tick endemic to Brazil, where nine species of Ixodes Latreille, 1796 are currently known to occur. Larvae, nymphs and females of I. schulzei were obtained from a laboratory colony originating from an engorged female collected on a free-living water rat Nectomys squamipes from the Santa Branca municipality, São Paulo State. Only female ticks were obtained from engorged nymphs. Unfed immature and female adult specimens were measured and the descriptions were based on optical and scanning electron microscopy, as were drawings of some features of the larva. Both immature stages present the very long palpi and basis capituli, and the female has large, contiguous porose areas. However, the basis capituli is triangular, with a slight central elevation in the larva and nymph, whereas in the female this area is depressed. The I. schulzei types deposited at the FIOCRUZ (Instituto Oswaldo Cruz) were also examined, as was other material from collections, such as the IBSP (Coleção Acarológica do Instituto Butantan), CNC-FMVZ/USP (Coleção Nacional de Carrapatos da Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia da USP) and USNTC (United States National Tick Collection). In addition, the relationship between I. schulzei and other immature neotropical species of Ixodes is discussed.

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“…The larval specimens were prepared for optical microscopy according to Famadas et al (1996), and four females and four nymphs were processed for scanning electron microscopy according to the method devised by Keirans et al (1976). All material was examined and measured under a light microscope.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ixodes (Multidentatus) paranaensis n. sp. (Acari: Ixodidae) a parasite of Streptoprocne biscutata (Sclater 1865) (Apodiformes: Apodidae) birds in Brazil

Barros‐Battesti

Arzua

Pichorim

et al. 2003

Mem. Inst. Oswaldo Cruz

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A note on slide-mounting technique of unfed immature stages of Amblyomma cajennense (Fabricius, 1787) (Acari: Ixodidae)

Cited by 11 publications

References 0 publications

Collection management and study of microscope slides: Storage, profiling, deterioration, restoration procedures, and general recommendations

Collection management and study of microscope slides: Storage, profiling, deterioration, restoration procedures, and general recommendations

Description of the immature stages and redescription of the female of Ixodes schulzei Aragão & Fonseca, 1951 (Acari: Ixodidae), an endemic tick species of Brazil

Ixodes (Multidentatus) paranaensis n. sp. (Acari: Ixodidae) a parasite of Streptoprocne biscutata (Sclater 1865) (Apodiformes: Apodidae) birds in Brazil

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