SPECIAL STAINING

Staining of CARBOHYDRATES
Periodic Acid Schiff/PAS
PAS with Diastase
Best Carmine

For glycogen
For glycogen
For glycogen
Mast cell
granules
Fibrin
Mucin
Not specific for
glycogen
May also stain
amyloid

Langhans Iodine
method (Carletons
method)
Oldest stain,
considered
obsolete
Rapid stain but
not a permanent
stain as it fades
after a few months
Fresh Frozen Azure A
For
Metachromatic Stain
glycosaminoglycans
Alcian Blue Technique
Most popular method
for general
demonstration of acid
mucins
Metachromatic staining
For
Toluidine Blue Staining
glycosaminoglycans
Combined Alcian Blue
Demonstration
PAS Technique
of mucins
Separating acid
mucins and
neutral mucins
Mucicarmine Stain
For mucus
Southgates
For encapsulated
Mucicarmine Technique
fungi like
Cryptococcus
neoformans
Hales Dialyzed
For acid mucins
(colloidal) Iron
Technique

Fluorescent Acridine
Orange Technique
Disadvantage is
that it is
temporary and will
only last for about
2 hours once the
section is
mounted
Staining of FATS or LIPIDS

Sudan Black
Sudan IV (Scharlach
R)
Oil Red O method in
Dextrin
Osmic Acid Stain
Not a dye but
an unstable
oxide
Used as
fixative for
electron
microscopy
and in
histochemistry
Nile Blue Sulfate

Toluidine Blue
Acetone Method
Borohydride Periodic
Schiff (BHPS)
Staining of PROTEINS

For acid
mucopolysaccharides

For lipids mainly

triglycerides
For fats
Demonstration of
unsaturated fats

For neutral fats

Cholestrin
esters and
cholestrin fatty
acids
Cerebrosides
Fatty acids and
soap
For sulfatide deposits
For gangliosides

Alkaline Fast
Green Method

Peracetic Acid
Alcian Blue
Sakaguchis test

For basic proteins

especially
protamines and
histones
For cysteine and
cysteine
For arginine

Staining of ENZYMES

Gomori Calcium
method
Gomori Lead
method
Lead method for
5-nucleotidase
(Wachsstein and
Meisel)
Alpha naphthyl
acetate method
for non-specific
esterases
Indoxyl acetate
method for nonspecific esterases
(Holt and Withers)
Tetrazolium
method for
monamine oxidase
(Glenner et. al)

For alkaline
phosphatase
For acid
phosphatase
For 5-nucleotidase

For non-specific
esterases

For esterase
activity

For monoamine
oxidase activity

Staining of NUCLEIC ACID

Fuelgens techinique

For DNA

for nuclear DNA

Most reliable
and specific
histochemical
staining
technique for
DNA, best
known for
chromatin and
nucleoproteins
Methyl green-pyronin
method
Acridine Orange
fluorescent staining
Most commonly
used
fluorochrome to
demonstrate
DNA and RNA

For RNA and

DNA
For RNA and
DNA

Staining of CONNECTIVE TISSUE

Gomoris Silver
Impregnation
Van Gieson
Massons Trichrome
Stain
Weigerts Elastic
Tissue Stain
Orcein (Taenzer-UnnaOrcein)
Krjians Techinique
(employing congo red)
Mallorys
Phosphotungstic Acid
Hematoxylin (PTAH)
method

Highmans Congo Red

For reticulin fibers

For collagen
For collagen fibers
For elastic fibers
For elastic fibers
Repaid method of
staining elastic fibers
Stain for both
CNS material
and general
tissue
structures
For muscle
striations
For amyloid

Technique
Method of
choice in many
laboratories in
demonstrating
amyloid
Krajians Amyloid
Staining (Modified
Bennhold Method)
Methyl Violet Crystal
Violet Method
Induced Fluorescent
Staining with
Thioflavine T
Fluorescence
may be
imparted to
amyloid by
staining with
thioflavine T and
exposing the
tissue to
ultraviolet or
quartz iodine
lamps

For amyloid

For amyloid
For amyloid

Staining of BONE MARROW and BLOOD ELEMENTS

Rapid Toluidine
Eosin stain for
glycol
methacrylate
section
Wrights Giemsa
Jenner Stain
Peroxidase
Reaction for
Myeloid cells

Glycol methacrylate
section

For myeloid cells

except basophils

Staining of MUSCLE and BONE

Modified Gomoris
Trichrome Stain
Mallorys
Phosphotungstic
Acid Hematoxylin
(PTAH)
Heidenhains Iron
Hematoxylin

For muscle fibers

and collagen
For muscle,
neuroglia, myelin,
collagen

Muscle striations,
mitochondria,
myelin, and
chromatin
Lissamine Fast Red For muscles and
- Tartrazine
bones
Schmorls Picro
For bones (lacunae,
Thionin Method
canaliculi, and bone
matrix)

Staining of CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM

Bielschowsky Technique
Bodians Stain

For neurons, axons, and

neurofibrils
For nerve fibers and
nerve endings
For demonstrating

Sevier Munger Technique

Cresyl Fast Violet (Nissl) Stain

for paraffin sections
Weigert Pal Technique of
staining Normal Myelin Sheath
Kluver and Barrera Luxol Fast
Blue Stain for myelin with Nissl
Counterstain
Luxol Fast Blue H&E Stain
Luxol Fast Blue PAS
Hematoxylin Stain
Weils Method
Cajals Gold Sublimate

neuritic plaques and

neurofibrillary tangles
for the diagnosis of
Alzheimers disease
Foe neural tissues
Commonly used for
demonstrating neuritic
plaques and
neurofibrillary tangles
for the diagnosis of
Alzheimers disease
For missle substance, neurons
For myelin sheath
For myelin

For myelin
For myelin
For myelin sheath
For astrocytes, nerve cells and
nerve fibers

Modified holzers Method for

astrocytic processes

Staining of TISSUE PIGMENTS and DEPOSITS

Perls Prussian
Blue

For hemosiderin the iron containing

pigment of hemoglobin, seen as

yellow to brown granules normally

found inside the cell. It is the most
common hemoglobin derivative
Stain for iron pigments

Gomoris Prussian
Blue
Turnbulls Blue
For hemosiderin
Reaction for
ferrous iron
(hemosiderin)
Benzidine
For hemoglobin and oxidase granules
Nitroprusside Stain
Modified Fouchets For liver bile pigments
Technique
Schmorls Ferric
For argentaffin cells, chromaffin
Ferricyanide
For thyroid colloid For bile,
method for
melanin, lipofuscins yellow
reducing
brown to reddish brown
substances
pigment produced by slow
oxidation of lipids and
lipoproteins, it can be found in
hepatocytes, cardiac muscle
cells, adrenal cortex, and other
organs
Gomoris Aldehyde For lipofuscin
Fuchsin
Mallorys Fuchsin
For hemofuscin pigment
Stain
Masson Fontane
For argentaffin granules and melanin
Technique
an autogenous pigment (brown or
Widely used black) normally found in the skin and
eyes pathological deposition of
for melanin
demonstrati melanin occurs in benign lesions
such as nevus or mole or in
on
melanoma
Calcium Dye lake
For staining skeletal system in
Reaction
embryos and fetuses
Von Kossas Silver For calcium demonstration
Nitrate Method
Lindquists
For staining copper
Modified
Rhodamine
Technique

Staining of MICROORGANISMS

Gram Twort Stain

Brown and Brenn
Ziehl Neelsen Method
Wade Fite Technique
Auramine
Rhodamine
Fluorescent Method
Toluidine Blue Stain for
Helicobacter
Cresyl Violet Acetate
Method for
Helicobacter
Dieterie Method
Levaditis
Wathin-starry Method
Modified Steiner and
Stainer Technique for
Spirochetes
Grocott Methamine
Silver (GMS)
Lendrums PhloxineTartrazine Method
Rapid Giemsa

For bacteria
For bacteria, Nocardia, and
Actinomyces
For AFB
For leprosy bacilli (M.
leprae) and Nocardia
For Mycobacteria

For Helicobacter
For Helicobacter

For Legionella pneumophilia

For spirochetes
For spirochetes
For spirochetes
Donovan bodies
Fungi and bacteria
For fungi
For viral inclusions
For HBsAg
For blood and bone
marrow parasites
(Leishmania, Malaria,
and Trypanosomes)
Inclusion conjunctivitis
Toxoplasma
Spirochetes and other
bacteria