Staining Methods Flashcards
7 cards from real Histology Certification practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Staining Methods flashcards as text
Which stain is specifically used to identify reticular fibers in tissue sections?
Answer: Gordon and Sweet's reticulin stain
Gordon and Sweet's reticulin stain uses silver impregnation to selectively blacken reticular fibers.
What color do elastic fibers appear when stained with Verhoeff's Van Gieson (VVG) stain?
Answer: Black
Verhoeff's Van Gieson stain colors elastic fibers black while collagen appears red and muscle appears yellow.
The PAS (Periodic Acid-Schiff) reaction detects which type of tissue component?
Answer: Polysaccharides and glycoproteins
PAS oxidizes vicinal diols in polysaccharides and glycoproteins to aldehydes, which then react with Schiff reagent to produce a magenta color.
Which fixative is most compatible with enzyme histochemistry?
Answer: Cold acetone or unfixed frozen sections
Cold acetone or unfixed frozen sections preserve enzyme activity, whereas aldehyde fixatives typically inactivate enzymes.
In the Ziehl-Neelsen stain, what property of Mycobacterium tuberculosis allows it to retain carbol fuchsin?
Answer: High lipid content of its cell wall (mycolic acids)
The high mycolic acid content of mycobacterial cell walls makes them acid-fast, retaining carbol fuchsin even after acid-alcohol decolorization.
Sudan black B stain is used to demonstrate which tissue component?
Answer: Lipids and fatty acids
Sudan black B dissolves in and stains lipids dark blue-black, making it useful for identifying fat droplets and lipoproteins.
What is the role of mordant in Hematoxylin staining?
Answer: It acts as a link between the dye and tissue component
A mordant (typically alum) forms a coordination complex bridging hematoxylin to negatively charged tissue components like nucleic acids.