We dissected a sheep’s head today and prepared simple slides of brain, retina and optic nerve, and then viewed these with my Leitz Laborlux 11 microscope using x4, x10, and x40 objectives.
Dissecting sheep’s head:
The brain of the sheep can be seen just before removal.
Brain unstained slides, x4 objective:
The red streaks are blood vessels – note these are all unstinted sections.
Brain unstained x10 objective:
These sections were all made by using scalpel to cut thin section by eye and then squashing it on slide with some water based mountant using a cover slip. They are therefore quite thick.
Optic nerve, unstained, x4 objective:
Optic nerve, unstained, x10 objective:
Optic nerve, unstained, x40 objective:
In the section below, looks as though an axon (projection from a nerve) has been pulled out – long worm-like structure.
Likewise, in the slide below, there appear to multiple coiled structures which I suspect are axons.
Retina, unstained, x4 objective (below):
Retina, unstained, x10 objective:
There appears to cells on stalks – are these neural connections to retinal cells?
Note the heavy pigment of the retina – black – it absorbs all light.
Retina, unstained, x40 objective: