Histology FAQ

Staining, Histochemistry and Histotechnology

(Frequently Asked Questions)

Dr. John A. Kiernan
Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology
The University of Western Ontario
London, Canada

FAQ Home > Staining Methods, Histochemistry

Enzyme histochemistry on cell cultures

Question.

How do you perform enzyme histochemistry (NADH Dehydrogenase, succinic Dehydrogenase, cytochrome oxidase)on cultured cells grown on slides? Would you use a detergent (or other means) to permeabilize membranes prior to application of the reaction medium?

Answer.

I just take the coverglass from the culture medium, give it a rinse in buffer, incubate for required time, wash gently, then mount. No fixing, no detergent; just incubate and mount. It works, so why complicate matters?

Ian Montgomery
(I.Montgomery[AT]bio.gla.ac.uk)