Can we remove a gastropod animal from its shell before preservation? many times it happens that when we preserve an animal then after few days it get decay. So I am wondering for removing the animal from shell without damaging tissue and without breaking the shell. especially for DNA barcoding when the specimen exposed to ethanol it covers the body inside by operculum so the proper amount don't get inside the shell and after sometime the body of organism will be decayed. please give an appropriate answer for how to remove the animal from the shell for best preservation result.
It depends which group of gastropods are you talking about. Methods can slightly vary in small and mid- to large-sized species / groups.
As for large specimens (e.g., Neritidae, Thiaridae, large Cyclophoridae) you have to to made a small hole(s) in the shell wall to ensure ethanol is coming inside of it and conserving the tissue for DNA.
Smaller species (e.g., Diplommatinidae, Pupinidae, smaller Cyclophoridae) are not as easy - usually you have to breake shell of one of specimens or use juvenile individuals for DNA barcoding since their opercula are less developed than in adults and ethanol comes through.
Freezing will not help.
Another method is to submerge them in water for a short time.
Depends on group and purpose of work. For micros, Nik-nuki works well, i.e. wait for snail to crawl, then pour boiling water over it, so it is killed outside the shell). For medium sized marine shells, narcotize in MgCl2 while crawling. For large heavy shells, you may have to break the shell or drill holes into it for preservatives to get in. If anatomical integrity is critical, then decalcify entire shell in hydrochloric acid (or more gently in EDTA). Every method has pros and cons.
Here is one method : Article Using microwaves to prepare gastropods for DNA Barcoding
Other interesting papers :
Article Optimized drowning procedures for pulmonate land snails allo...
Article DNA analysis of molluscs from a museum wet collection: A com...
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