Plastination
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Plastination is a technique used in anatomy to preserve bodies or body parts. The water and fat are replaced by certain plastics, yielding specimens that can be touched, do not smell or decay, and even retain most microscopic properties of the original sample.
The technique was invented by Gunther von Hagens when working at the anatomical institute of the University of Heidelberg in 1978. Von Hagens has patented the technique in several countries and is heavily involved in its promotion, especially with his travelling exhibition Body Worlds showing plastinated human bodies all over the world. He also founded and directs the Institute for Plastination in Heidelberg.
The first step of plastination is fixation. This simply means that the body is embalmed, usually in a formaldehyde solution, in order to halt decomposition. After any necessary dissections take place, the specimen is then placed in a bath of acetone. Under freezing conditions, the acetone draws out all the water and takes its place inside the cells. In the third step, the specimen can then be placed in a bath of liquid polymer, such as silicone rubber, polyester or epoxy resin. By creating a vacuum and lowering the pressure, the acetone is made to boil. As the acetone vaporizes and leaves the cells, it draws the liquid polymer in behind it, leaving a cell filled with liquid plastic. This is known as forced impregnation. The plastic must then be cured, either with gas, heat, or UV light, in order to harden it. A specimen can be anything from a full human body, to a small piece of an animal organ, and are known as either "plastins" or "plastinates".
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[edit] Other Exhibitors
In 2004 the publicly traded US company Premier Exhibitions Inc. began their "Bodies Revealed" exhibition in Blackpool, England which ran from August through October 2004. In 2005 and 2006 the company opened their Bodies Revealed and Bodies...The Exhibition exhibitions in Seoul (South Korea), Tampa (Florida) and New York (NY) respectively. Another exhibition site in 2006 is the Houston Museum of Natural Science in Houston (Texas).
[edit] Further reading
- "Heidelberg Plastination Folder" (Original title: "Heidelberger Plastinationshefter"). 1985/86, Institute for Anatomy at Heidelberg University
[edit] External links
- A graphic guide to plastination at Science Buzz*
- Preservation by Plastination, on Body Worlds page
- Polymer Preservation: The Process
- [1]Discovery, March 2004, 'Gross Anatomy by Alan Burdick'
[edit] Links from the Institute of Biomedical Science
- Plastination: Is it science or art?
- Plastination: Silicone Impregnation of Specimens (the standard S10 technique)
- Plastination: The Sheet Plastination Technique
- List of US patents by Gunther von Hagens
- PLASTINATION at The Medical University of Vienna
