Breast Center Pathology Laboratory
SERVICES/RESOURCES - RESEARCH
Routine Histology Services
The routine histology services offered by the Breast Center pathology laboratory are as follows:
1. Fixation
The primary goal of fixation is to arrest the autolysis and putrefaction
of tissues with the goal of stabilizing the morphological structure
and biochemical relationships between constituent proteins for subsequent
analysis (e.g. H&E, immunohistochemistry, etc.). Fixation for
paraffin processing is typically performed using commercial grade
10% Neutral Buffered Formalin.
2. Paraffin Processing and Embedding
Paraffin processing involves three major steps; dehydration using ethanol,
clearing with xylenes, and infiltration with paraffin. We use state
of the art Sakura Tissue-Tek VIP Processor, and the Sakura Tissue-Tek
paraffin embedding center. A variety of advanced programs and protocols
for different types of tissue are available at the Breast Center
Pathology Laboratory.
3. Frozen Embedding
A Histobath and isopentane (2-Methyl butane) is used to freeze fresh
tissue in cryoprotectant (e.g. O.C.T.) embedding media.
4. Microtomy
The Breast Center Pathology Core Lab performs microtomy on paraffin
tissue blocks from around the world with the high precision Richard-Allan
(formerly Zeiss) HM 315 microtomes and on frozen tissue with the Leica
CM 1850 cryostat.
Paraffin microtomy is performed on routine as well as tissue microarray blocks. The thickness of sections ranges from 3-4 um for both H&E staining and immunohistochemistry. We also perform high precision sectioning using a Histocollimator for minute specimens. Tissue source species may involve human, mouse, or rat.
Frozen tissue microtomy is performed for a variety of applications, from routine H&E staining to confocal microscopy. The section thickness can range from 4 um to 60 um.
5. Hematoxylin and Eosin Staining (H&E)
It is performed on paraffin sections as well as frozen sections. We
use Shandon Varistain (24-4) Automatic Stainer for H&E, and Hematoxylin
counter staining on sections for immunohistochemical staining.
6. Special Histochemistry
Currently the laboratory offers a limited number of special histochemical
stains. These include: