Markushka Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 Why would I want your dead fish you may ask... Well, I am working for a small start up company, Phytosis and we have this new product called visikol. Its a clearing agent. We are looking for specimens to clear. The end result is something like this Now, we are working on a tight budget, so we would appreciate any donations of deceased livestock, shipping costs would be compensated. If it is something truly spectacular and we must clear it, compensation can be discussed. We would like to acquire more specimens without having to resort to killing feeder goldfish. Link to comment
laguna-madre Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 Have you considered asking your LFS to store any dead fish for you? I work at a fish store and sadly fish die daily. Link to comment
Markushka Posted January 23, 2014 Author Share Posted January 23, 2014 Yes actually. I have been going to all the LFS in my area, and my cooworkers do the same. Its really hit or miss tho, sometimes we get lucky and get there before they dispose of them. Other times there are no managers and the employees aren't cooperative. its all across the board. Some LFS won't even admit that they lose fish which is particularly annoying for me. Here is an example of one of the first mice we cleared and stained: Link to comment
Nocturnal Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 So what's the layman's explanation for how this kind of process works? Link to comment
Eclipse Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 This looks pretty cool but... What exactly happens to the corpse? I don't understand. Link to comment
Markushka Posted January 23, 2014 Author Share Posted January 23, 2014 Okay well the way our product works is that it seeps into the tissues and makes the refractive index uniform throughout causing the specimen to become transparent. The mice and other small organisms clear pretty fast, within a matter of days. At the same time it also acts as a preservative, so the tissue is still there and not damaged. Link to comment
patback Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 Just out of curiosity, how big of an animal is too big for you to accept? No I do not have a stock pile of animal carcasses. Just want to know how big of a project you have going. Link to comment
Markushka Posted January 23, 2014 Author Share Posted January 23, 2014 one thing we need to do tho is start taking better pictures! I wish I had a better one, but cell phones and round containers are not a good recipe for good shots. In the works tho. Link to comment
VABumpkin Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 How does the product work on a molecular level? As in, how does it chemically react with the tissues specifically? This is very cool btw. Link to comment
Markushka Posted January 23, 2014 Author Share Posted January 23, 2014 Just out of curiosity, how big of an animal is too big for you to accept? No I do not have a stock pile of animal carcasses. Just want to know how big of a project you have going. We can theoretically handle anything, we would just need to find a big enough vat and I'm sure somewhere at Rutgers one can be found. However, I would not envision this being to practical with such large animals as cows or even goats for that matter. We have been promised some sharks from a researcher out in Cali, and I'm not sure how big those will be yet... We would certainly love to get some of of the bigger reef fishes, and skates have awesome cartilage structure, but they aren't really kept in nano tanks lol How does the product work on a molecular level? As in, how does it chemically react with the tissues specifically? This is very cool btw. There isn't much of a chemical reaction, besides the removal of some proteins into the solution. The product is designed to permeate the tissue and create a uniform refractive index whilst simultaneously removing water. Link to comment
patback Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 Do you have health protocols on shipping deceased animals? I'd imagine freezing would ruin what you want to view, so does it have to be kept at refrigeration temperature? Link to comment
VABumpkin Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 So pretty much no chemical alteration. Awesome. Link to comment
Markushka Posted January 23, 2014 Author Share Posted January 23, 2014 Do you have health protocols on shipping deceased animals? I'd imagine freezing would ruin what you want to view, so does it have to be kept at refrigeration temperature? I would suggest freezing, it doesn't damage the macro structures, and we aren't doing microscopic histology yet tho we will soon. Preserved in ethanol or isopropyl could also work, but preferred shipping methods would be either frozen or fresh via priority mail. So pretty much no chemical alteration. Awesome. Yes, it keeps the specimen intact unlike some of the current clearing methods and is safe to handle and use outside a lab. We are actually working on creating hobbyist kits to generate some revenue for further development. Link to comment
Ruester007 Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 I saw an exhibit by the first (or one of the first) people to work on this process. Very fascinating. http://www.shinsekai-th.com/ Photos: http://www.shinsekai-th.com/en/photo.php Good Luck! Link to comment
Markushka Posted January 23, 2014 Author Share Posted January 23, 2014 That guy has some really cool pieces, and I think he used chloral hydrate to clear his specimens. Being outside the US, he doesn't need a DEA licence to get that stuff. Works pretty well too as you can see. Link to comment
VABumpkin Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 Holy crap I need all of them. These would make for some awesome decor. A chandelier made with a whole bunch of these containers, with a light bulb in each one. Link to comment
Markushka Posted January 23, 2014 Author Share Posted January 23, 2014 I don't think a chandelier would lend itself to a long shelf life... but that would be epic... Link to comment
lessergeneration Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 I would love to see a "cleared" salmon! Link to comment
Markushka Posted January 23, 2014 Author Share Posted January 23, 2014 want to send us one? Link to comment
lessergeneration Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 Give me about 5 months and we could work something out, Im a salmon fisherman and could find a way to send you a big chinook(20-30ish pounds). Link to comment
Markushka Posted January 23, 2014 Author Share Posted January 23, 2014 I want to get one of these Link to comment
LarryMoeCurly Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 Interesting. What is the purpose? Are the cleared specimens for sale? Link to comment
Baccus Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 I am another member of this lab and am happy to answer any questions anyone has. We are currently working on reuseability tests and looking into expanding into larger specimens. All we really need are the animals to work with. We will eventually be selling cleared specimens and would like to offer a clearing service. Unfortunately, we cannot do that until our process is perfected. For that, we need practice on a wide variety of specimens. Link to comment
Markushka Posted January 23, 2014 Author Share Posted January 23, 2014 Yes, as baccus said, we are mainly working on creating protocols right now. We have proved that our product works well on plants and mammals, and our first few fish trials have been just as successful. We are trying to show that Visikol can apply to as many fields as possible. Link to comment
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