Journal of Histotechnology最新文献

Myxoid liposarcoma (MLPS) has different patterns that are often difficult to distinguish from other soft tissue lesions. MLPS is characterized by a reciprocal translocation involving the DNA Damage Inducible Transcript 3 gene (DDIT3) that can be detected using fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH). Recently, the marker for cancer testis antigen 1b (CTAG1B) was found to be expressed in MLPS. The aim of the present study was to assess the potential use immunohistochemistry (IHC) for CTAG1B expression and DDIT3 rearrangement to diagnose MLPS and distinguish it from similar lesions. Out of 29 cases including MLPS and its mimics, CTAG1B was expressed in 92.86% of cases of MLPS and 20% of its mimics. DDIT3 rearrangement was 100% sensitive and 92.86% specific in distinguishing MLPS from its mimics. The DDIT3 rearrangement was found to be more sensitive but less specific than cytoplasmic expression of CTAG1B marker. DDIT3 polysomy and amplification were detected in some cases. Therefore, both CTAG1B expression and FISH for DDIT3 gene can be used to distinguish MLPS from similar tumors. The use of both immunohistochemistry for CTAG1B in addition to DDIT3 gene rearrangement detection by FISH was more specific than using either of them alone. However, the DDIT3 gene rearrangement alone was the most sensitive test for distinguishing MLPS from its mimics.

Analysis of surgical pathology specimens by histological techniques including immunohistochemistry (IHC) assays is a mainstay of disease diagnosis in humans. Neutral buffered formalin (NBF) is currently the primary fixative used, but its use is not without risks due to toxicity and carcinogenicity. Several glyoxal-based fixatives have been commercially produced, are considered safer alternatives to NBF, and produce histochemical staining results comparable to that of tissues fixed in NBF. However, previous studies evaluating IHC assay results in tissues fixed in NBF and glyoxal solutions have indicated mixed results. This study demonstrated that while tissues fixed in NBF were slightly superior to tissues fixed in glyoxal solutions among the 34 antibodies assayed with IHC, all fixative solutions produced results compatible for use in an anatomic pathology laboratory.

In June and July 2021, the National Society for Histotechnology (NSH) conducted an online survey designed to assess productivity and staffing in the clinical histology laboratory. The Productivity Benchmarking Survey was developed by the NSH Quality Management Committee. The survey of histology professionals provides critical data that may be used to inform staffing decisions and develop a quality management program. To create usable data the findings were segmented by a range of variables including facility type and size, and productivity related to grossing, embedding, microtomy, and ancillary duties. This study draws a connection between perceived operational efficiencies and the presence of a program or process used to assess employees quality performance for grossing, embedding, and microtomy. A followup survey is planned to further understand these particular employee assessment programs or processes.

There are many published methods of decalcifying bone for paraffin histology; however, the current literature lacks details regarding the processing of ovine tissue. Ovine bone tissue presents challenges, as samples are often denser and larger than other comparative animal models, thus increasing decalcification times. Trifluoroacetic Acid (TFAA) has previously been used to decalcify ovine bone samples for histological analysis. Unfortunately, TFAA is a strong acid and often results in loss of cellular detail, especially in the connected soft tissue. This is generally manifested as over staining with eosin, and a decrease in cellular features which impacts overall histological interpretation. It is well known that leaving tissue in acid for long periods degrades cellular detail; therefore, minimizing decalcification time is critical to accurately determine cellular morphology. Six decalcification solutions (8% TFAA, 20% TFAA, 8% formic acid, 20% formic acid, Formical-4, and XLCal, and three temperatures (room temperature, 30°C, 37°C), were examined to determine their effects on cellular detail in ovine vertebrae and humeral heads. These data clearly indicate that 20% formic acid at 30°C yielded better decalcification rates (2.6 d ± 0.9 d) and cellular detail (none to mild changes) for the vertebrae samples, and 20% formic acid at RT yielded the best cellular detail (none to minimal loss) for humerus samples with a moderate amount of time (6.5 d ± 1.7). These results should establish the optimal demineralization procedures for ovine bone used in scientific studies resulting in improved cellular detail while minimizing decalcification times.

Melan-A is one of the most commonly used immunohistochemical assays (IHC) in dermatopathology laboratories to detect the presence and outline the distribution of melanocytes. It is a cytoplasmic stain that detects a melanocyte-specific cytoplasmic protein involved in the formation of stage II melanosomes. Clinically, Melan-A is primarily used to detect and confirm melanocytic tumors although it is also positively expressed in adrenal cortical tumors and sex cord stromal tumors. We found that Melan-A also detected and highlighted Henderson-Patterson bodies of molluscum poxvirus. To determine if other melanocytic markers detect molluscum contagiosum bodies, S-100, HMB-45, MITF, and SOX-10 were also tested. In 15 tested molluscum cases, Melan-A stains were positive in all cases, whereas the other tested melanocytic markers were negative. Our results confirm that Melan-A is very sensitive in detecting molluscum contagiosum bodies and could be clinically useful to supplement the hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) in cases that are very inflamed or only have limited biopsy material.