VietNamNet Bridge – Vietnamese and German experts on April 21 began processing the body of Hoan Kiem turtle, using the plastination technique.

Hoan Kiem turtle.

Dr. Phan Ke Long, deputy director of the Vietnam Museum of Nature, said the process may last from one to one and a half years, because the specimen is relatively large.

According to German experts, the body of the legendary turtle is not in the best state. The turtle was not preserved perfectly, perhaps because the time of death was not identified accurately, they said.

Upon arriving in Vietnam, German experts immediately preserved some parts of the specimen which had seriously degraded.

The Director of the Hanoi Department of Science and Technology – Mr. Le Xuan Rao – has requested the related agencies to store specimens of the turtle for research and finding the causes and its death, but this task must not affect the process of preservation.

The Asia Turtle Conservation also is involved in the preservation of some DNA samples of the turtle for research. The organization said that the chance to clone the soft-shelled turtle species no longer existed because the tissues collected did not meet the requirements.

The turtle body will be preserved by the plastination technique. This method will keep the animal preserved for a long time. Water and fat in the cells will be sucked out before experts inject a specialized plastic into the turtle body. When the plastic is absorbed through cells, it will help keep the structure.

This is the first time Vietnam performs the technique, so Vietnam has invited two leading German experts to perform the task.

The Hoan Kiem turtle died on January 19. It was handed over to the Vietnam Museum of Nature for preservation. The turtle was 185 cm long, with the shell of 100 cm wide, weighing 169kg.

The cause of death was aging. The longest-lived turtle in the world is 180 years, while the Hoan Kiem turtle was estimated to be 200 years old.

Plastination is a unique technique of tissue preservation developed by Dr. Gunther von Hagens in Heidelberg, Germany in 1978. In this process, water and lipids in biological tissues are replaced by curable polymers (silicone, epoxy, polyester) which subsequently harden, resulting in dry, odorless and durable specimens. The class of polymer used determines the optical (transparent or opaque) and mechanical (flexible or firm) properties of the impregnated specimen.

Silicone is used for whole specimens and thick body and organ slices to obtain a natural look. Epoxy resins are used for thin, transparent body and organ slices. Polyester-copolymer is exclusively used for brain slices to gain an excellent distinction of gray and white matter.

The technique consists of four main steps: Fixation, dehydration, forced impregnation and hardening (curing).

Plastination is carried out in many institutions worldwide and has obtained great acceptance particularly because of durability, possibility for direct comparison to CT- and MR-images, and high teaching value plastinated specimens.

Le Ha