RAPID DECALCIFICATION OF TEMPORAL BONES WITH PRESERVATION OF ULTRASTRUCTURE

Decalcification of temporal bones, especially from primates, has routi nely required long periods of time and has been a major deterrent to m any types of morphological studies. In this investigation, temporal bo nes from the monkey, Macaca fuscata, were decalcified with ethylene di amine tetraacetic acid (EDTA) in a microwave oven. To isolate effects of microwaves on decalcification, tissue was fixed and embedded using routine methods; only decalcification was carried out in the microwave oven. The procedure is described in detail. Instead of months, decalc ification was complete in two working days. Control procedures include d decalcification at room temperature and use of a regular oven at a t emperature equal to that reached in the microwave. The ultrastructure of cochlear tissue was equal to or better than that obtained with rout ine decalcification.