How the Compresstome® Compares to Other Market Slicers

We listened to scientists around the world on what they would like in a tissue slicer, and we implemented those features into the latest Compresstome® models. Here is how our slicers compare to those on the market.

Other Tissue Slicers

Vibrating microtome slicers are historically the standard source for laboratory and industry slicing. The only adjustable components include vibration amplitude, speed of blade movement, and the blade angle.

There are 3 key disadvantages of vibrating slicers:

1. Extremely time consuming (slow cutting speed results in worse slice health)

2. Faster cutting speed causes chattermarks

3. Some tissues are difficult to cut without tearing or shearing

Compresstome® Slicers

Our Compresstome® slicers help overcome all 3 limitations of vibrating microtome cutters!

Top reasons to choose Compresstome®:

1. Generate fresh tissue sections 5 times faster

2. Can cut larger sized tissue sections

3. Cutting difficult tissues that are fibrous

4. No more chatter marks or shearing of tissue

What is the advantage of the Compresstome® compared to other slicers?

Below are the empirical results of tests we ran in the lab to visually show how the results of tissue cut with the Compresstome® compare to sections made with another top vibrating microtome on the market.

Magnification

Compresstome® VF-300-0Z

Other market vibrating slicer

10X

40X

Magnification

10x

Compresstome® VF-300-0Z

Other market vibrating microtome

Magnification

40x

Compresstome® VF-300-0Z

Other market vibrating microtome

In summary:

  • Sections made with the Compresstome® are even, and are free of chattermarks. At a slower cutting speed, sections with a market leading vibrating microtome have uneven surfaces and significant chattermarks.
  • Slice cutting speed is much faster with the Compresstome®—you can complete your job quicker!
  • Overall, the Compresstome® produces superior slices with high quality surfaces for your experiments.

The Compresstome® vibrating microtome are tissue slicers that have been designed and patented by Precisionary Instruments to achieve healthier and smoother sections for better research results. Using an advanced agarose-embedding technique, both fresh and fixed specimens can be completely stabilized during the cutting process, which yields slices with consistent thicknesses to help scientists obtain reliable data.

What makes the Compresstome® better? For fresh tissue, our vibrating microtome cuts faster to give you slices with an increased number of healthy cells—making your electrophysiology and imaging experiments easier. For fixed tissue, the Compresstome® can cut anywhere from 4 µm- to 500 µm-thick slices, without chatter marks or vibration artifacts. The faster, automated process of slicing helps you save time in obtaining fixed tissue sections for immunohistochemistry or in-situ hybridization experiments.

“Currently, we are able to routinely perform (on a daily basis) patch-clamp recordings from mechanically-dissociated neurons with adherent boutons only when using the VF-200, which was previously unobtainable using vibrating microtomes purchased from other leading companies.”

-Dr. Jie Wu, Director of Epilepsy Research, Barrow
Neurological Institute


“The main advantages of this machine are the rapid speed of slicing and the manual stabilization afforded by the agarose embedding. I am able to prepare uniform slices in both the coronal and horizontal planes, and I routinely complete transcardial perfusion, brain removal, and slicing all within less than 10 minutes, which is half the time needed with the Vibrating microtome model.”

-Dr. Jonathan Ting, Allen Institute


“[W]e have experience using a variety of microtomes from different vendors, [but] we were excited by the VF-300’s ability to provide superior slices.”

-Dr. Yan Gu and Dr. Shaoyu Ge, Department of Neurobiology, SUNY at Stony Brook


“I have been consistently cutting exceptional quality brain slices and have succeeded in obtaining stable whole-cell patch recordings from numerous neurons.”

-Dr. Newton Woo, PhD NICHD/NIH


“Immediately we experienced success in obtaining mechanically-dissociated neurons with adherent pre-synaptic boutons using the microtome from Precisionary Instruments, Inc., and we also noticed [that the] cell quality was much higher when compared to neurons obtained using the other vibrating microtomes.

-Dr. Jie Wu, Director of Epilepsy Research, Barrow
Neurological Institute


“When I use the VF-200, I have a significantly greater number of surface neurons than those slices cut from a regular Vibrating microtome. In addition the slice surface is much more even, which allows for better imaging.”

-Dr. Newton Woo, PhD NICHD/NIH


“We obtained surprisingly good electrophysiology results from even slices of relatively old (6 week) animals. The slices were very clean on the surface, and the majority of the cells were alive including those very close to the surface.”

-Dr. Yan Gu and Dr. Shaoyu Ge, Department of Neurobiology, SUNY at Stony Brook


“I am thoroughly impressed with the VF-200 and would not hesitate recommending this quality product to fellow electrophysiologists.”

-Dr. Newton Woo, PhD NICHD/NIH


“We found the Compresstome produces a less apparent damage to the cells of the airways and arterioles as well as to the delicate alveolar parenchyma. Using the Compresstome we are able to obtain more reproducible and successful experiments.”

-Dr. Perez-Zoghbi, Texas Tech University


“I have successfully been able to do targeted whole-cell recordings from fluorescently labeled neurons in slices prepared from >1 year old mice, which is not generally possible with conventional slicers and methods.”

-Dr. Jonathan Ting, Allen Institute


“With the Compresstome® I was able to prepare high quality slices with excellent preservation near the slice surface.”

-Dr. Jonathan Ting, Allen Institute


“[T]he model’s design is also suited for cutting small or very soft tissues. We also used it for preparing organotypic tissue cultures, and it worked well.”

-Dr. Yan Gu and Dr. Shaoyu Ge, Department of Neurobiology, SUNY at Stony Brook


“[C]ell survival rates were significantly higher when using the VF-200.”

-Dr. Jie Wu, Director of Epilepsy Research, Barrow
Neurological Institute


“The VF-300 is more consistent in generating uniform slices and leaves the structure of the tissue/cells more intact than the method we had been using. We have been able to extend the amount of time over which we can cut lung slices, and allows preservation of the architecture of the slice and greater viability of the tissue.”

-Dr. Cynthia Kozial-White, University of Pennsylvania