STAINING, PRACTICAL AND THEORETICAL 



ANILINE BLUE - ORANGE G - ACID FUCHSIN 



(After Mallory) 



For connective tissue 



Solutions required: 



A. Acid fuchsin 0-5% aqueous. 



B. Aniline Blue - Orange G. 



Technique: 



Tissues are fixed in Zenker and embedded in paraffin wax, 

 Celloidin or L.V.N. 



1. Mount sections on slides and bring down to 90% alcohol; 

 then treat with iodine in the usual way to remove mercuric deposits. 



2. Bring down to distilled water and stain for one to ten minutes 

 in Solution A ; then without washing : 



3. Stain for twenty minutes to one hour or longer in Aniline 

 Blue - Orange G ; then remove excess stain with several changes 

 of 95% alcohol. 



4. Dehydrate with absolute alcohol ; clear in xylol and mount in 

 Cristalite, 



Note: If Celloidin or L.V.N, sections are used the staining time 

 may be shortened and 95% alcohol should be used for decolor- 

 izing and dehydration ; terpineol for clearing. 



Results: 



Collagenous fibrils : intense blue. Ground substances of cartilage, 

 bone, mucus, amyloid : varying shades of blue. Nuclei, myoglia, 

 neuroglia fibrils, axis cylinders, fibrin, nucleoli : red. Blood cor- 

 puscles and myelin: yellow. Elastic fibrils: pale pink or pale 

 yellow, or unstained; fibriloglia: red or unstained. 



Note: By omitting the acid fuchsin the collagenous fibres are 

 more sharply defined. 



Reference: Mallory, F. B. (1900). 



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