Methods, apparatus and systems for production, collection, handling, and imaging of tissue sections

Abstract

Methods, apparatus and systems for collecting thin tissue samples for imaging. Thin tissue sections may be cut from tissue samples using a microtome-quality knife. In one example, tissue samples are mounted to a substrate that is rotated such that thin tissue sections are acquired via lathing. Collection of thin tissue sections may be facilitated by a conveyor belt. Thin tissue sections may be mounted to a thin substrate (e.g., by adhering thin tissue sections to a thin substrate via a roller mechanism) that may be imaged, for example, by an electron beam (e.g., in an electron microscope). Thin tissue sections may be strengthened before cutting via a blockface thinfilm deposition technique and/or a blockface taping technique. An automated reel-to-reel imaging technique may be employed for collected/mounted tissue sections to facilitate random-access imaging of tissue sections and maintaining a comprehensive library including a large volume of samples.