April 2013: This Month in JoVE

Summary

Here are some highlights from the April 2013 Issue of Journal of Visualized Experiments (JoVE).

Protocol

Introducing an Angle Adjustable Cutting Box for Analyzing Slice Shear Force in Meat

Tom Whitesell¹, Carmen Avilés², Jennifer L. Aalhus¹, Chris R. Calkins³, Ivy L. Larsen¹, Manuel Juárez¹

Slice shear force is a reference method for beef texture analysis. Using an angle adjustable cutting box could increase its accuracy for research purposes. The results from different locations within the longissimus muscle show a high correlation with Warner-Bratzler shear force methodology and high potential adaptability for different muscles.

Three-dimensional Imaging of Nociceptive Intraepidermal Nerve Fibers in Human Skin Biopsies

Jacqueline Dauch¹, Chelsea Lindblad¹, John M. Hayes¹, Stephen I. Lentz², Hsinlin T. Cheng¹

In order to study the changes of nociceptive intraepidermal nerve fibers (IENFs) in painful neuropathies (PN), we developed protocols that could directly examine three-dimensional morphological changes observed in nociceptive IENFs. Three-dimensional analysis of IENFs has the potential to evaluate the morphological changes of IENF in PN.

Wide-field Fluorescent Microscopy and Fluorescent Imaging Flow Cytometry on a Cell-phone

Hongying Zhu¹, Aydogan Ozcan^1,2,3

We review our recent results on the integration of fluorescent microscopy and imaging flow cytometry tools on a cell-phone using compact and cost-effective opto-fluidic attachments. These cell-phone based micro-analysis devices might be useful for cytometric analysis, such as performing various cell counting tasks as well as for high-throughput screening of e.g., water samples in resource limited settings.

Isolation and Culture of Neural Crest Stem Cells from Human Hair Follicles

Ruifeng Yang, Xiaowei Xu

This article presents a robust protocol for isolation and culture of neural crest stem cells from human hair follicles.