VPT 321: Veterinary Neuropharmacology (2+1) copy 1

PHYSIOLOGICAL SALT SOLUTIONS

• These are the solutions in which the isolated tissues in organ bath will be kept for experiments. These provide nourishment and ideal conditions for maintenance of the tissue.
• These must be  prepared with analar grade salts / chemicals in glass-distilled, or deionized water. It is important to select the particular salt solution in which the tissue survives longest. It is also important to aerate the solution with the appropriate gas mixture. For example, on continued aeration by pure oxygen of a solution containing a bicarbonate buffer, it loses carbon dioxide and becomes alkaline.
• Physiological salt solutions can be kept for about 24 hours, but they can be good media for the growth of microorganisms and therefore must be chilled. If it is wished to prepare them more than 24 hours in advance of the time when they will be used, they can be stored in the refrigerator for longer periods, provided that the glucose and calcium salts are omitted and added only when the solution is required for use.