| Stain
|
Uses
|
Tissue Components Targeted
|
Mechanism of Staining
|
Stains Used
- Primary
- Secondary
|
Other Reagents
|
| Hematoxylin & Eosin (H&E)
|
|
- Nuclei - blue
- RBCs - red/dark pink
- Muscle - pink
- Collagen - light pink
|
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- Harris Hematoxylin (nuclear)
- Eosin Y (cytoplasm)
|
Harris Hematoxylin
Acid Alcohol
Scott's tap water substitute
Eosin Y
|
| Periodic Acid-Schiff (PAS)
|
- Identifying glycogen, starches, and fungi (chitin)
|
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| Alcian Blue (AB)
|
|
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|
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| Alcian Blue + Periodic Acid-Schiff (AB PAS)
|
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| Congo Red
|
- Identifying amyloid deposits
|
|
Hydrogen bonding
|
|
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| Masson Trichrome
|
- Identifying fibrotic tissue
|
Connective Tissue Stain
- Nuclei - blue-black
- RBCs - dark red
- Muscle - red
- Cytoplasm - red
- Collagen - varies by stain (often green or blue)
|
Porosity and ionic bonding
|
No primary stain.
- Iron hematoxylin (nuclear)
- Ponceau (dense connective)
- Light green or aniline blue (loose connective)
|
|
| Gordon and Sweet's Reticulin
|
- Identifies reticulin fibres (type III & IV collagen)
- Differential diagnosis of certain tumour types
|
Connective Tissue Stain
- Reticulin fibres - black
- Nuclei and cytoplasm - varies by counterstain
|
Metallic impregnation
- Argyophilic metallic impregnation & substitution
Counterstain
|
- a
- Varies (light green, nuclear fast red, neutral red, etc.)
|
| Verhoeff's Van Giesen
|
- Identifies elastin fibres
|
Connective Tissue Stain
- Elastic fibres - blue-black/black
- Nuclei - dark blue-black
- Collagen - red
- Muscle - orange
- RBCs - yellow
- Cytoplasm - yellow
|
Van der Waal's
Porosity and ionic bonding
|
- Verhoeff's Iron Hematoxylin (elastic fibres)
- Van Giesen
- Picric acid (RBCs and cytoplasm)
- Acid fuchsin (collagen and muscle)
|
|
| Oil Red O
|
- Identifying triglycerides, lipids, and lipoproteins
|
Connective Tissue Stain
|
Selective solubility
|
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