Carnoy’s fluid fixation

Contributed by Martin Fitzpatrick, University of Birmingham, United Kingdom

Fixation of samples in Carnoy’s fluid

  • In a fume hood pour 60ml of ethanol into a suitable container
  • Add 30ml choloroform
  • Add 10ml glacial acetic acid to give a total volume of 100ml
  • Place tissue into fixative for 1-3 hours
  • Process fixed tissues immediately or transfer to 80% alcohol for storage

This method is based, with permission, on an original protocol available here.