NSH has recruited two of its highest rated speakers to bring you this one day forum dedicated to troubleshooting stains. New and seasoned Histotechs will benefit from their insights and handout material. Special for this event - handouts will be available for download in color following the event.
The event will take place February 19, 2011 in Bethesda, MD, 8am - 4:30pm. Individuals can register via the NSH website, http://www.nsh.org/stainforum <http://www.nsh.org/stainforum> Topics include: AM Session: Troubleshooting Hematoxylin and Eosin Staining Presented by Ada Feldman, MS, HT/HTL(ASCP)CM, Anatech Ltd, Battle Creek, MI Hematoxylin and eosin is the primary diagnostic stain in anatomical pathology. However, tissue processing and staining procedure steps can all affect the H&E's final appearance, potentially interfering with diagnosis. This workshop will help the histotech troubleshoot such common problems of smudgy nuclei, improper staining, "soap suds", haziness and more. The workshop will review the steps in tissue processing (fixation through slide drying) and H&E staining (deparaffinization through coverslipping) that can alter the stained appearance of a slide. Traditional reagents (formalin, alcohol, xylene) as well as substitute reagents (xylene substitutes, special fixatives, formalin-free fixatives) are discussed. PM Session: Troubleshooting Immunohistochemical Stains Presented by Richard W. Cartun, MS, PhD, Hartford Hospital, Hartford, CT Results from immunohistochemical stains are essential for patient diagnosis and treatment. The major goal of standardization in immunohistochemical testing is to produce high-quality stains where the results are accurate and reproducible, both in your laboratory and in others. Do you find yourself repeating a lot of immunohistochemical stains due to high background, uneven immunoreactivity, weak immunoreactivity, or a negative result when your pathologist tells you it should be positive? This workshop will examine causes of suboptimal immunohistochemical staining including poor fixation, poor tissue sectioning, inadequate antigen retrieval, antibody dilution errors, and detection system problems. The importance of antibody validation, use of positive and negative controls, and quality assurance/quality control procedures will also be discussed. _______________________________________________ Histonet mailing list Histonet@lists.utsouthwestern.edu http://lists.utsouthwestern.edu/mailman/listinfo/histonet