Biological Sample Holder for Stereotactic Imaging Correlation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current technologies lack standard methods for obtaining uniform thickness slices of biological tissue samples and accurate stereotactic co-localization of gross and histological findings with imaging data, limiting radiology-pathology correlations and research efficiency.
Innovation Solution
A system comprising a primary sample holder with slots and a grid for aligning biological samples, and a secondary sample holder for further cutting, along with an outer shell for imaging, ensures consistent orientation and cutting of biological samples using CT or MRI techniques, facilitating precise stereotactic co-localization.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If manual cutting of biological samples is performed without standardized orientation, then cutting flexibility is maintained, but manufacturing precision of slice thickness and orientation consistency deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The cutting apparatus is segmented into modular components: a holder for the biological sample, a separate cutting blade assembly, and a grid system. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized independently while maintaining overall precision, resolving the contradiction between device complexity and manufacturing precision.
Solution Approach 2:
The apparatus incorporates adjustable parameters including blade angle, cutting depth, and sample positioning coordinates. By enabling parameter adjustment, the system achieves uniform slice thickness and consistent orientation without requiring a completely complex fixed mechanism, thus balancing device complexity with manufacturing precision.
2Manufacturing precision
If standardized cutting orientation apparatus is implemented, then manufacturing precision of slice orientation is improved, but ease of operation deteriorates due to alignment requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The apparatus includes pre-marked orientation guides and alignment markers on the sample holder and grid. These preliminary visual cues enable operators to quickly align samples without complex procedures, maintaining ease of operation while achieving consistent slice orientation through standardized reference points.
Solution Approach 2:
The grid system provides a reproducible template that can be copied or reset for each sample. This copying mechanism allows operators to maintain precise orientation consistency across multiple samples without requiring complex alignment procedures for each individual sample, thus preserving ease of operation.
3Productivity
If multiple sampling locations are examined through systematic cutting, then diagnostic yield is improved, but loss of time in post-processing imaging increases
Solution Approach 1:
The apparatus incorporates fiducial markers and coordinate registration systems that provide immediate feedback during the cutting process. This feedback mechanism allows operators to track slice positions and orientations in real-time, enabling rapid correlation with imaging data without extensive post-processing, thus reducing time loss while maintaining high diagnostic yield through systematic multi-location sampling.
Data Source
AI summary
A primary sample holder for imaging, gross pathology, or histological correlations of a biological sample includes an enclosure having a first side wall, a second side wall, and a bottom wall; a plurality of slots provided at predetermined intervals along the first and second side walls; and a grid recessed within the bottom wall. The grid includes a hole bisected by a central panel and at least one axial panel that intersects the central panel along a length thereof. The biological sample received by the primary sample holder is configured to be aligned with the central panel of the grid to align the biological sample along an accepted internal orientation line (e.g., the anterior-posterior commissure line in the brain). The slots are configured to receive a cutting device to cut the biological sample into slices of uniform thickness containing a region of interest based on histological and imaging findings.