Brundige

Cannon
Lab Report
Dissection of cows Eyeball
Purpose or question:
The purpose of this lab was to get us familiar with the eye and all its
makeup. We also learned the terms of the eye and how to properly make
incisions.

Background information:

The cows eye was preserved. We were given two different eyes to dissect,
the first one weighing 54.8 grams and measuring 7.5 centimeters long and
5 centimeters wide, while the second one weighed 48.2 grams, 7.2
centimeters long, and 5 centimeters wide.

Hypothesis:

We concluded that the first eyeball would be the hardest to dissect because
it was our first time doing it. We believed that once we cut into the eye, we
would be splattered with aqueous humor.

Materials:

Scalpel- for making incisions and cutting

Scale- for weighing the eyes
Ruler- for measuring the eyes
Tweezers- for holding back folds and pulling out items

Procedures: To correctly dissect both eyeballs we had to do the

following:
Step 1: Gather all materials together, put on gloves, apron, and goggles,
then receive the eyeball from the instructor.

Step 2: Weigh, measure, and take a picture of the eyeball before we

began dissecting.

Step 3: After the picture is taken, lay the eyeball down and use the
scalpel to gently remove the fat tissue from the eye, careful not to cut off
the optic nerve.

Step 4: The optic nerve is showing. There is no more fat tissue. Cut into
the cornea and watch the aqueous humor leak out. Get picture of
aqueous humor.

Step 5: Cut around the cornea. You should now have two halves of the
eyeball.

Step 6: Remove the iris by gently peeling it, carefully using the scalpel,
or using tweezers. Lay it flat and take a picture of the removed iris,
exposing the zonular fibers.

Step 7: Clear the fluid from the lens, the vitreous humor, and take a
picture of both.

Step 8: Remove the tapetum and take a picture of it.

Step 9: Grab the half of the eye where the optic nerve is and make a cut
that bisects the eye and the optic nerve.

Step 10: Fully slice the cut and take a picture.

Step 11: Repeat steps 2-10 for the other eye.

Results:

We learned about the nerves in the eye and everything that contributes
to the whole makeup of the eye. We learned new terms, the aqueous
humor, the blind spot, the ciliary body, rods and cones, the fovea
centralis, iris, lens, optic nerve, retina, sclera, tapetum, vitreous humor,
and the suspensory ligaments, as well as where they are located. At the
end of the lab, all of these were taken out of the eye and we were left
with a hard shell.