I work at a derm lab, and we see 3-5 nail specimens a week on average. We use a 10% potassium hydroxide and let them soak for 1-3 hours depending on the size of the specimen. Then at the microtome after we face in, we soak the blocks in 10% ammonium hydroxide for 5-10 minutes, which softens them up nicely for cutting. We also use the ammonium hydroxide to soak specimens with a high keratin content that makes them extremely crispy at the microtome.
Nathan Jentsch BS HT(ASCP) _______________________________________________ Histonet mailing list Histonet@lists.utsouthwestern.edu http://lists.utsouthwestern.edu/mailman/listinfo/histonet
