Are you sure you get the best image quality out of your microscope? About cleaning the front lens and using the aperture diaphragm.

No matter what microscope is in use, it should always be the intention of the user to optimize the image, means to get maximum information out of the sample. We are not talking about aesthetics, as some wrong microscope setup creates nice but misleading images, for example based on diffraction effects. From an educational model to a high-end outfit: experience shows that on any level of hardware and user knowledge mistakes are possible. Microscope experts are sometimes irritated when they walk through a hospital lab. Teaching correct microscope handling is simply not spirit of the time.

For an optimal image quality, the front lens of the microscope objective should be simply “clean”. No scratches, not grease, no residuals of immersion oil. This is not easy to achieve, as in daily work, especially with multiple users, a care for this aspect is not always in focus.

A nice example of a scratched/dirty front lens

What are blue-green algae?

Blue algae are cyanobacteria and live on light, carbon dioxide and nutrients dissolved in the water. Blue algae were the first organisms on earth and they produce oxygen. Many nutrients in the water can cause blue-green algae blooms.

The video and photo are showing these organisms present in a sample of water from a port in the southern Netherlands. The sample was taken shortly after exceptionally hot days with an outside air temperature of 40 degrees Celsius. With a blue-green algae bloom, the many blue-green algae on the water surface can come together and form a floating layer. Many types of blue-green algae make poisons. Contact with or swallowing blue-green algae can cause health problems.

Case of ovarian cavernous hemangioma

Case report

A 46 year-old woman without any pathological background except multiple uterine leiomyomas was undergone to a total hysterectomy and bilateral adnexectomy. During study of surgical specimen, a little reddish nodule of 9 mm was discovered in the hilum of the left ovary. 

Microscopically, this nodule was made of dilated thin-walled vascular channels, filled of blood.

Image taken with a Moticam X3

Lick granuloma dog

A lick granuloma or acral lick dermatitis is a place on the skin as a result of frequent licking by the dog and is found usually at the end of the paws, hence acral (think of the Athenian Acropolis: city on top) Lesion is sharply defined. This is a nasty ailment. It is not always clear what causes it, but itching is often the reason. A physical cause is rarely found. Usually the cause is psychological such as boredom, separation anxiety, stress, nervousness or attention seeking behavior. Licking is then a distraction for the dog. Once the dog is licking, it is difficult to stop this. It has become a habit for the dog.

The first symptoms are discoloration of the coat due to the saliva. The skin can become thicker and bald. Inflammation of the skin is possible due to the granuloma. This starts itching more and makes the dog more lick and bite. Then the dog comes in a vicious circle. The process can continue down to the bone, sometimes amputation is necessary. A lick granuloma actually only occurs on the front legs.