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POCATELLO - Chris Minert's education in anatomy extends well beyond studying diagrams in a textbook. The Idaho State University dental student has the opportunity to view the real thing.

On Tuesday, Minert examined one of 10 human cadavers in the university's Life Sciences Department. About 50 to 60 ISU students going into the health professions utilize human cadavers for their course work.

"We have a test tomorrow," Minert said, pulling a black sheet over a body with its rib cage exposed. "We're just kind of going over the cadaver and identifying some structures."

Jeff Meldrum, a biology professor who teaches anatomy courses for physical therapy students, said there's great demand for human cadavers at ISU. He said the health science departments usually try to have at least a dozen cadavers every year but are working with 10.

ISU is requesting cadaver donations from within a 200-mile radius of Pocatello.

"This semester, there was a shortage of cadavers," Meldrum said. "So we need a consistent reliable supply."

Meldrum said individuals can arrange to have their bodies donated for scientific research before dying. He said ISU then works with the Downard Funeral Home, which embalms the bodies and sends them to the university's cadaver lab.

Embalming is necessary for preserving the bodies, kept at ISU for four or five years.

Meldrum said ISU usually receives about one cadaver a month, but the availability of bodies from out-of-state sources has decreased in recent years. He said it has been a common practice to purchase cadavers from out-of-state universities, but the rising cost of transporting bodies has made that less feasible.

Meldrum argues cadavers are a much better alternative to digital images or human models for teaching students in the health sciences.

"It presents a situation where students can have more human contact. It gives them an opportunity to learn the body in a very unique way," he said. "They get a better understanding of their tissues and organs. It's not exactly like a living patient, but the contrast in textures and organs is still very informative."