Annals of Anatomy 209 (2017) 11–17 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Annals of Anatomy jou rn al hom ep age: www.elsevier.com/locate/aanat RESEARCH ARTICLE The mixture of liquid foam soap, ethanol and citric acid as a new fixative–preservative solution in veterinary anatomy Erkut Turan a,∗ , Ozay Gules b , Figen Sevil Kilimci a , Mehmet Erkut Kara a , Omer Gurkan Dilek c , Seyyid Said Sabanci d , Musa Tatar b a Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Adnan Menderes, Aydin, Turkey b Department of Histology and Embryology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Adnan Menderes, Aydin, Turkey c Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Mehmet Akif Ersoy, Burdur, Turkey d Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Kirikkale, Aydin, Turkey a r t i c l e i n f o Article history: Received 24 May 2016 Received in revised form 31 August 2016 Accepted 11 September 2016 Keywords: Fixative Preservative Cadaver Embalming Ethanol Liquid foam soap Citric acid a b s t r a c t The present study investigates the efficiency of liquid foam soap, ethanol, citric acid and benzalkonium chloride as a fixative–preservative solution (a soap-and ethanol-based fixing solution, or SEFS). In this study, ethanol serves as the fixative and preservative, liquid foam soap as the modifying agent, citric acid as the antioxidant and benzalkonium chloride as the disinfectant. The goat cadavers perfused with SEFS (n = 8) were evaluated over a period of one year with respect to hardness, colour and odour using objec- tive methods. Colour and hardness were compared between one fresh cadaver and the SEFS-embalmed cadavers. Histological and microbiological examinations were also performed in tissue samples. Addi- tionally, the cadavers were subjectively evaluated after dissection and palpation. The SEFS provided the effectiveness expected over a 1-year embalming period for the animal cadavers. No bacteria or fungi were isolated except for some non-pathogenic Bacillus species. Visible mould was not present on either cadav- ers or in the surrounding environment. The cadavers maintained an appearance close to their original anatomical appearance, with muscles having good hardness and elasticity for dissection. © 2016 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction The discovery of formaldehyde by the German chemist August Wilhelm von Hofmann in 1869 was a milestone to embalming. Formaldehyde (used to embalm cadavers to the present day) became a common fixing agent thanks to several desirable char- acteristics, including its impact on the denaturation reactions of proteins as well as its antioxidant activity and ability to prevent microbial growth (Brenner, 2014; Balta et al., 2015). However, formaldehyde is associated with several health risks. A registered carcinogen (NTP, 2010), formaldehyde has irritant effects on the airways, skin and eyes. It has also potential adverse effects on foetal development (Saillenfait et al., 1989; IARC, 2006). Precautions such as the use of gas masks, reduction of formaldehyde concentrations in fixing solutions, rinsing off of cadavers in water before handling (Janczyk et al., 2011) and proper improvements in laboratory venti- lation (Hammer et al., 2012) have been recommended to minimize the harmful effects of formaldehyde. Nevertheless, evaporation of formaldehyde from formalin-preserved cadavers has been sug- ∗ Corresponding author. Fax: +90 256 247 07 20. E-mail address: eturan@adu.edu.tr (E. Turan). gested to be carcinogenic even with the use of personal protective equipment in the gross anatomy laboratory (Balta et al., 2015). With the recognition of these harmful effects has come the awareness of the need for new embalming alternatives in both veterinary and human medicine. Recently, the effectiveness of pick- ling salt supplemented with antioxidants (Friker et al., 2007) and nitrite pickling salt with ethanol and glycols (Janczyk et al., 2011) was reviewed, with both items reported to be sufficient fixatives and preservatives. The European Association of Establishments for Veterinary Education (EAEVE) recommended a method devised by Friker et al. (2007) as a non-toxic, easy-to-handle alternative fixa- tion method to preserve macroscopic anatomic specimens (EAEVE, 2010). However, Friker’s method has not proven useful in the preservation of the whole cadaver, in spite of it being good for con- serving limbs (Janczyk et al., 2011). With another method proposed by Janczyk, the internal organs have been of distorted consistency and colour when the cadaver is conserved with a closed abdominal cavity (Janczyk et al., 2011). Embalming fluids used in preservation of gross anatomy are expected to provide good long-term structural preservation of organs and tissues, proper tissue stiffness for dissection and preser- vation of the colours of tissues and organs (Coleman and Kogan 1998; Brenner 2014; Balta et al., 2015). These fluids should also http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.aanat.2016.09.002 0940-9602/© 2016 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.