BIOL 311 Exam 1 Binghamton Final
Test Questions And 100% Correct
Answers 2025-2026 Update.
Dark Specimen, bright viewing field requires staining
Pathologist, histologist, cytochemistry
Iden - Answer 1. Bright field microscopy/compound light microscopy
isolate the tissue or organ, choose a fixative that cross-links protein (formaldehyde), remove
water and the fixative, replacing it with ethanol, replace ethanol with xylene, replace with
molten paraffin and let solidify, cut 10–15-micron sections, remove the wax by doing the above
steps in reverse, and stain with dye - Answer Typical protocol for bright field microscopy
A chamber that can maintain low temperatures, preserves frozen tissue samples that can then
be sliced - Answer 1. Cryostat
Mohs surgery - Answer What would a cryostat be used for?
observes living cells, light changes speed when travelling through extracellular structures,
suitable for single cells or thin tissue not thicque. Relies on constructive and destructive
interference - Answer 1. Phase contrast microscope
cell biologists who want to use living cells and see the outer surface of cells - Answer who
would use phase contrast microscopy?
Splits light into two perpendicular components before going through the specimen and creating
a interference pattern, used to look at organelles, this and phase contrast can be used in a time
lapse - Answer 1. Nomarski/Differential Interference Contrast
cell biologists who want to use living cells/neurobiologists who want to position pipettes for
intracellular injection of transmembrane voltage recordings - Answer Who would use
Nomarski/DIC
Used to study ionic currents of individual isolated living cells, or patches of cell membrane,
sucks up a little of the cell
, Area around cells is dark, used to enhance contrast in unstained living samples, can
photodegrade things
Increases contrast but not resolution
Polarizing light micro
i. Neurons are highly organized so no light penetration - Answer Darkfield microscopy
monochromatic laser (diffraction limited), laser can be manipulated to study the specimen spot
by spot, stray image is filtered using a confocal pinhole, total summed image can be displayed
on a screen - Answer characteristics of confocal microscopy
Images are taken through several holes simultaneously within a millisecond- good for dynamic,
moving processes - Answer Spinning Disk Confocal microscopy
faster, requires lower laser intensity, decrease in photobleaching, less heat generated, good for
cells undergoing dynamic processes - Answer Advantages of spinning sidk confocal microscope
Collects illuminated light through a pin hole, moves across the focal plane to get the full image,
can shoot at different heights to make 3D image, slow and photobleachs
Very bright images, need dead cells - Answer 1. (point scanning) Laser-Scanning Confocal
microscopy
Can photobleach, and not good for dynamic processes, heat affects the image and resolution-
fine for regular work with fixed specimens - Answer Problems with point scanning confocal
microscope
Neurobioligists/muscle cell biologists. detects highly ordered parallel structures in a cell -
Answer Polarizing light microscope
has a polarizer above the light soure and analyzer above the objective lens. Both rotate to
generate contrast. The polarizer filters light into a single plane and the analyzer determines if
intracellular structures rotate the plane of polarized light - Answer how does a polarizing light
microscope work?
Can be ised for analyzing fibrosis in organs - Answer Applications of polarizing light microscope
Test Questions And 100% Correct
Answers 2025-2026 Update.
Dark Specimen, bright viewing field requires staining
Pathologist, histologist, cytochemistry
Iden - Answer 1. Bright field microscopy/compound light microscopy
isolate the tissue or organ, choose a fixative that cross-links protein (formaldehyde), remove
water and the fixative, replacing it with ethanol, replace ethanol with xylene, replace with
molten paraffin and let solidify, cut 10–15-micron sections, remove the wax by doing the above
steps in reverse, and stain with dye - Answer Typical protocol for bright field microscopy
A chamber that can maintain low temperatures, preserves frozen tissue samples that can then
be sliced - Answer 1. Cryostat
Mohs surgery - Answer What would a cryostat be used for?
observes living cells, light changes speed when travelling through extracellular structures,
suitable for single cells or thin tissue not thicque. Relies on constructive and destructive
interference - Answer 1. Phase contrast microscope
cell biologists who want to use living cells and see the outer surface of cells - Answer who
would use phase contrast microscopy?
Splits light into two perpendicular components before going through the specimen and creating
a interference pattern, used to look at organelles, this and phase contrast can be used in a time
lapse - Answer 1. Nomarski/Differential Interference Contrast
cell biologists who want to use living cells/neurobiologists who want to position pipettes for
intracellular injection of transmembrane voltage recordings - Answer Who would use
Nomarski/DIC
Used to study ionic currents of individual isolated living cells, or patches of cell membrane,
sucks up a little of the cell
, Area around cells is dark, used to enhance contrast in unstained living samples, can
photodegrade things
Increases contrast but not resolution
Polarizing light micro
i. Neurons are highly organized so no light penetration - Answer Darkfield microscopy
monochromatic laser (diffraction limited), laser can be manipulated to study the specimen spot
by spot, stray image is filtered using a confocal pinhole, total summed image can be displayed
on a screen - Answer characteristics of confocal microscopy
Images are taken through several holes simultaneously within a millisecond- good for dynamic,
moving processes - Answer Spinning Disk Confocal microscopy
faster, requires lower laser intensity, decrease in photobleaching, less heat generated, good for
cells undergoing dynamic processes - Answer Advantages of spinning sidk confocal microscope
Collects illuminated light through a pin hole, moves across the focal plane to get the full image,
can shoot at different heights to make 3D image, slow and photobleachs
Very bright images, need dead cells - Answer 1. (point scanning) Laser-Scanning Confocal
microscopy
Can photobleach, and not good for dynamic processes, heat affects the image and resolution-
fine for regular work with fixed specimens - Answer Problems with point scanning confocal
microscope
Neurobioligists/muscle cell biologists. detects highly ordered parallel structures in a cell -
Answer Polarizing light microscope
has a polarizer above the light soure and analyzer above the objective lens. Both rotate to
generate contrast. The polarizer filters light into a single plane and the analyzer determines if
intracellular structures rotate the plane of polarized light - Answer how does a polarizing light
microscope work?
Can be ised for analyzing fibrosis in organs - Answer Applications of polarizing light microscope
