[Histonet] Oil Red O questions

[Andrea Grantham]

Every now and then I do Oil Red O stains (sometimes 30-50 at a time) and I 
have a few questions that maybe the experts in histoland can help me with.
First is stain residue on the slide - I make the working stain up fresh, 
let sit 10 minutes and filter and use right away. I use plus slides so 
maybe this is the problem? There is usually an even residue on the slide 
that I wipe away before coverslipping being careful to not wipe off the 
tissue. The tissue looks fine, there is staining where it should be and no 
residue from the stain on the tissue where it isn't supposed to be. How can 
this residue be reduced or eliminated or is this just the way it is?
Other question is which mounting medium is the best in your opinion for Oil 
Red O? I use Shur/Mount and it looks great at first but I had one person 
who went back a couple months later to take pictures and the slides had 
dried out to where the fat was OK but the nuclei were not sharp. If you 
need to take pictures of the stain is it best to do that right away? Should 
I be sealing the coverslips with nail polish?
Thanks.
Andi Grantham
.....................................................................
: Andrea Grantham, HT(ASCP)     Dept. of Cell Biology & Anatomy     :
: Sr. Research Specialist       University of Arizona               :
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