[Histonet] stain for intercalated discs

[koellingr <@t> comcast.net]

Sharon,

I agree with Gayle about a good H&E showing these off nicely with the emphasis on "good" because with washed out, not crisp H&E's, they can become not so easy to see.  I don't know for what kind of project you are trying to localize intercalated discs beyond just seeing these on routine H&E's.  If it is for a special project here is what I did.  In grad school I TA'd in the microanatomy course for all the first year medical students.  To help them along a bit in identifying intercalated discs, I made up 125 slides, for their boxed slide sets, of mouse and human heart stained with azocarmine and thionin.  The ID's stand out nicely and are easy to find (for sometimes clueless first year med students).  Any look at an older histology picture atlas, there are many other stains such special stains to localize these structures. Also, I did an immunoperoxidase on a couple of demo slides (certainly not 125) so they could identify specific components of the ID.  You can use antibodies again
st cadherin (calcium dependent adherin), desmoplakin, titin (connectin) or many others.  Get a good model and description of an intercalated disc.  Is just not the wall between 2 adjacent cardiomyocytes.  Is an incredibly complex and fascinating structure.  But if your goal is just screening and seeing them on routine H&E, that good H&E is certainly easiest and simplest.

Ray Koelling
Phenopath Labs
Seattle, WA

-------------- Original message -------------- 
From: "patsy ruegg" <pruegg <@t> ihctech.net> 

> What would be a good stains for thrombin, fibrin and/or platelets? 
> Patsy 
> 
> 
> Patsy Ruegg, HT(ASCP)QIHC 
> IHCtech 
> 12635 Montview Blvd. #216 
> Aurora, CO 80010 
> 720-859-4060 
> fax 720-859-4110 
> pruegg <@t> ihctech.net 
> www.ihctech.net 
> 
> -----Original Message----- 
> From: histonet-bounces <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu 
> [mailto:histonet-bounces <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu] On Behalf Of Gayle Callis 
> Sent: Thursday, March 08, 2007 4:52 PM 
> To: Sharon Chase; Histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu 
> Subject: Re: [Histonet] stain for intercalated discs 
> 
> We have always been able to identify these with a good, routine H&E stain. 
> 
> At 01:41 PM 3/8/2007, you wrote: 
> >Hi There, 
> > Does anyone have a specific stain for cardiac intercalated discs?My 
> >tissue is mouse heart. 
> > Thank you in advance. 
> >_______________________________________________ 
> >Histonet mailing list 
> >Histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu 
> >http://lists.utsouthwestern.edu/mailman/listinfo/histonet 
> 
> Gayle Callis 
> MT,HT,HTL(ASCP) 
> Research Histopathology Supervisor 
> Veterinary Molecular Biology 
> Montana State University - Bozeman 
> PO Box 173610 
> Bozeman MT 59717-3610 
> 406 994-6367 
> 406 994-4303 (FAX) 
> 
> 
> 
> _______________________________________________ 
> Histonet mailing list 
> Histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu 
> http://lists.utsouthwestern.edu/mailman/listinfo/histonet 
> 
> 
> _______________________________________________ 
> Histonet mailing list 
> Histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu 
> http://lists.utsouthwestern.edu/mailman/listinfo/histonet