Alternatives for morphometric and stereologic analysis in toxicopathology

Total cell numbers within a confined tissue volume, or fractions of cell nu mbers may be relevant in toxicopathology. They can be estimated with the di sector, or the formula of Ebbeson and Tang. For the latter the thicknesses of the sections should be estimated, e.g. with confocal microscopy, or with a vertically embedded section. The use of these methods, in combination wi th Cavalieri's principle, will avoid the inconsistencies possibly associate d with differences in the level of sectioning. Biochemical tests on intrace llular specific molecules may be applied on homogenized tissue. If the tiss ue is composed of different cell types reacting differently to the tested s ubstance, it may be necessary to estimate the fractions of different types of cells in the tissue concerned. Because of cell size differences, single sections do not give truthful results. The problem is solved by applying th e formula of Ebbeson and Tang. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd. All r ights reserved.