When Tissue Antigens and Antibodies Get Along - Revisiting the Technical Aspects of Immunohistochemistry—The Red, Brown, and Blue Technique
by J. A. Ramos-Vara and M. A. Miller
Veterinary Pathology, 2014, 51(1): 42-87
Abstract:
Once focused mainly on the characterization of neoplasms, immunohistochemistry (IHC) today is used in the investigation of a
broad range of disease processes with applications in diagnosis, prognostication, therapeutic decisions to tailor treatment to an
individual patient, and investigations into the pathogenesis of disease. This review addresses the technical aspects of immunohistochemistry
(and, to a lesser extent, immunocytochemistry) with attention to the antigen-antibody reaction, optimal fixation
techniques, tissue processing considerations, antigen retrieval methods, detection systems, selection and use of an autostainer,
standardization and validation of IHC tests, preparation of proper tissue and reagent controls, tissue microarrays and other
high-throughput systems, quality assurance/quality control measures, interpretation of the IHC reaction, and reporting of results.
It is now more important than ever, with these sophisticated applications, to standardize the entire IHC process from tissue
collection through interpretation and reporting to minimize variability among laboratories and to facilitate quantification and
interlaboratory comparison of IHC results.
by J. A. Ramos-Vara and M. A. Miller
Veterinary Pathology, 2014, 51(1): 42-87
Abstract:
Once focused mainly on the characterization of neoplasms, immunohistochemistry (IHC) today is used in the investigation of a
broad range of disease processes with applications in diagnosis, prognostication, therapeutic decisions to tailor treatment to an
individual patient, and investigations into the pathogenesis of disease. This review addresses the technical aspects of immunohistochemistry
(and, to a lesser extent, immunocytochemistry) with attention to the antigen-antibody reaction, optimal fixation
techniques, tissue processing considerations, antigen retrieval methods, detection systems, selection and use of an autostainer,
standardization and validation of IHC tests, preparation of proper tissue and reagent controls, tissue microarrays and other
high-throughput systems, quality assurance/quality control measures, interpretation of the IHC reaction, and reporting of results.
It is now more important than ever, with these sophisticated applications, to standardize the entire IHC process from tissue
collection through interpretation and reporting to minimize variability among laboratories and to facilitate quantification and
interlaboratory comparison of IHC results.