MEDICAL AND BIOLOGICAL STAINING TECHNIQUES 



Technique: 



1 . Small pieces of tissue, not more than z mm. in diameter, are 

 fixed for twenty-four hours in Altmann's Fluid. 



2. Wash for an hour in running water ; then dehydrate ; clear, 

 and embed in paraffin wax in the usual manner. 



3. Sections, not thicker than 4//, are brought down to distilled 

 water; then stained for six minutes in Solution B. 



4. Pour off excess stain; then blot section carefully; then 

 differentiate and counterstain by flooding the preparation with 

 Solution C. 



5. Rinse quickly in 95% alcohol; then dehydrate with absolute 

 alcohol ; clear in xylol, and mount. 



Results: 



Mitochondria are stained crimson against a vivid yellow back- 

 ground. 



1 



'j 



ANILINE SAFRANIN (Babe's) 

 For demonstrating mitosis in animal tissues 



i 



Solutions required: < 



A. Aniline Safranin (Babe). s 



B. Alcohol 95% 99 ml. \ 



Acetic acid 1% . . . . . . i ml. j 



Technique: \ 



1. Fix small pieces of tissue in Flemming's or Hermann's fluid 

 and embed in paraffin wax. | 



2. Stain sections for five to ten minutes in the safranin solution. 



3. Rinse in water. 



4. Differentiate in the acid alcohol (Solution B). 



5. Rinse in 95% alcohol. 



6. Rinse in absolute alcohol. 



7. Clear in xylol and mount. 



Results: 



Mitotic figures are stained an intense red, while resting nuclei 

 are deep pink to colourless. 



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