CHAPTER XXIX. 



CONNECTIVE TISSUES. 



Connective Tissue. 



742. General Stains for Connective Tissue. Connective tissue, 

 elastic tissue, and smooth muscle are all normally acidophilous. 

 Collagen, the distinctive element of connective tissue, absolutely 

 requires " acid ' dyes for the production of a permanent stain, 

 whilst elastic tissue and muscle will also fix " basic " dyes. Collagen 

 has a special affinity for Saurefuchsin and Wasserblau. Elastin 

 has a strong affinity for acid orcein, whilst muscle has no special 

 affinity for either, but stains energetically with picric acid. 



Picro-sdurefuchsin is much used and very convenient as a general 

 differentiating stain, but not to be recommended for cytological 

 detail. See SCHAFFER, Zeit. wiss. Zoo/., Ixxx, 1905, p. 176. 



E. and T. SAVINI recommend BENDA'S Picro-Saurefuchsin, 299. 



EHRLICH-BIONDI mixture gives connective tissue red, but smooth 

 muscle redder still. 



UNNA'S Wasserblau-orcem for distinguishing connective tissue 

 and muscle has been given, 676. It works after all fixatives. 

 Stain long, and dehydrate preferably with acid alcohol. 



FREEBORN (Amer. Mon. Mic. Journ., 1888, p. 231) recommends 

 (for sections) picro-nigrosin, made by mixing 5 c.c. of 1 per cent, 

 aqueous solution of nigrosin, with 45 c.c. of aqueous solution of 

 picric acid. Stain for three to five minutes, wash with water, and 

 mount in balsam. Connective tissue blue, nuclei blackish, the rest 

 yellowish. 



RAM6N Y CAJAL'S picro-indigo-carmme gives connective-tissue 

 fibres dark blue, with red nuclei. 



S. MAYER (Sitzb. k. Akad. Wiss., Ixxxv, 1882, p. 69) recommends 

 for staining fresh tissue Violet B, 330. Elastic fibres and smooth 

 muscle also stain, but of different tints. 



DUBREUIL (C. R. Ass. Anat., vi Sess., 1904, p. 62) uses a mixture 

 of 23 volumes 1 per cent, picric acid and 2 volumes 1 per cent, 

 methyl blue with a foregoing stain with carmalum or safranin. 



For RANVIER'S method of artificial oedemata for the study of 

 areolar tissue, see his Traite, p. 329. 



