JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments
Neuroscience
0 views • 3:35 min • May 29th, 2025
Take a chemically-fixed mouse pup brain with cerebral cavernous malformations or CCMs —clusters of abnormal blood vessels filled with stagnant blood.
Isolate the hindbrain, rinse with buffer, and incubate in an iodine-based staining solution.
Iodine penetrates the permeable blood vessels in CCM areas, binds to blood components, and enhances lesion contrast.
Air-dry the tissue to remove the excess staining solution.
Place the tissue in a tube and seal to prevent tissue shrinkage.
Secure the tube inside a larger tube with sponges and mount it vertically in the micro-CT holder.
Initiate the scan.
The X-ray source emits concentrated X-rays that pass through the tissue.
Iodine-stained areas absorb more X-rays than the surrounding tissue.
The detector records the transmitted X-rays, generating images where the CCMs appear brighter.
The system rotates the tissue, capturing 2D images from multiple angles.
Specialized software reconstructs these images into a 3D model, revealing CCM locations in the brain.
Begin sample preparation by filling a 10-milliliter syringe equipped with a 29-gauge needle with three milliliters of 2% paraformaldehyde in PBS. Then perform intracardiac perfusion on a euthanised
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