[Histonet] bluing

[Harrison, Sandra C.]

Hi Dorothy,

Try Richard Allan Bluing Reagent.  

Here's what they say about their product:  "It is a buffered product
that ensures the proper alkalinity (pH=8.0).  Unlike ammonia and lithium
carbonate, RA's Bluing Reagent does not allow for the pH shift which can
affect the crispness of nuclear detail."

When I first began supervising this lab 5 years ago, they "made from
scratch" their own hematoxylin and eosin (not to mention buffered
formalin.)  Unfortunately, the quality of the stain was very spotty and
caused the Pathologists a lot of problems.  I switched us to the Richard
Allan 7211 Hematoxylin, which has beautiful, crisp nuclear detail.  We
also went with the recommended Richard Allan Clarifier, Bluing and
Eosin, as well, so that we could produce a consistently high quality H&E
every time.  

In 5 years, we've had very few complaints about the stain from the 8-10
Pathologists we've worked with, except for one occasion when there was
some isolated nuclear hazing.  We did some detective work and determined
that the cause was due to a rack or two that had been placed in the oven
without properly removing the excess water or draining of the slides
before placing them in the oven.

Have a great week-end everybody.  It's practically the 1st sunny day
we've had, here in Minneapolis, for the past 2 weeks and Saturday and
Sunday's forecast looks good, too!

Sandy Harrison
VA-Minneapolis
Supervisor, Anatomical and Surgical Pathology
612-467-2449



-----Original Message-----
From: histonet-bounces <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu
[mailto:histonet-bounces <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu] On Behalf Of Webb,
Dorothy L
Sent: Friday, June 24, 2011 2:21 PM
To: 'histonet <@t> lists.utsouthwestern.edu'
Subject: [Histonet] bluing

Looking to change my "bluing" step in the H&E process to obtain a bluer
(less purple) hue to the nuclear detail.  What is everyone using in
their bluing step??

Thanks for all of your ideas!!



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