Fiducial Indicia for Tissue Section Positioning
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current histological analysis techniques face challenges in accurately determining the original position and orientation of sections within a block after sectioning, due to imprecision in sectioning methods and the difficulty in distinguishing between similarly embedded tissue samples, leading to laborious and time-consuming three-dimensional reconstruction processes.
Innovation Solution
Incorporating detectable fiducial and differentiating indicia within the block, such as complex patterns or machine-readable codes, that remain fixed during the embedding process, allowing for unambiguous identification of section positions and orientations through scanning and processing technologies.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If standardized embedding and sectioning protocols are used, then tissue samples can be efficiently processed into sections, but it becomes difficult to determine the original position and orientation of sections within the block
Solution Approach 1:
Fiducial markers are embedded into the tissue sample before the sectioning process begins. These markers serve as reference points that are carried through the embedding and sectioning steps, allowing the original spatial position and orientation to be determined later by detecting the markers in the resulting sections.
Solution Approach 2:
The fiducial markers act as intermediary reference objects that bridge the pre-sectioning and post-sectioning states. By detecting the positions of these markers in the sections, one can computationally reconstruct the original three-dimensional spatial relationships without needing to physically track the tissue during sectioning.
2Ease of manufacture
If multiple tissue samples are embedded in separate blocks, then each sample can be processed independently, but it becomes laborious and time-consuming to perform three-dimensional reconstruction and associate sections with their source blocks
Solution Approach 1:
The fiducial markers are designed to serve multiple functions: they identify the source block, indicate the original spatial position, and provide orientation information. This multi-functionality allows automated systems to rapidly match sections to blocks and perform three-dimensional reconstruction without manual intervention, significantly reducing the time required compared to traditional methods.
3Measurement precision
If sections are cut from the block, then the tissue can be analyzed in two-dimensional slices, but the nearness and shielding effects of sample components make it difficult to interpret analytical results from different components
Solution Approach 1:
The positions of fiducial markers detected in each section provide feedback information about the original three-dimensional spatial relationships. This feedback is used by computational algorithms to automatically reconstruct the three-dimensional arrangement of tissue components, resolving the shielding effects and enabling accurate interpretation of analytical results from multiple sections.
Data Source
AI summary
Tissue samples embedded in settable, sectionable media such as paraffin can be cut into sections. Embedding one or more sectionable fiducial indicia in the medium permits identification of the plane along which the medium has been cut. However, prior methods of inserting indicia into embedded tissue sample blocks are cumbersome and difficult to perform. Sectionable fiducial indicia can be embedded in a block of medium by releasibly fixing the indicia to the sidewall or base of a mold used to shape the tissue block during embedding of a tissue sample in the medium block.