Staining methods development

Some aspects of morphology can be observed directly by transmission electron microscopy of stained and ultramicrotomed thin sections. The most successful staining method, developed by Kato, makes use of osmium tetroxide, which attacks the double bonds in diene type polymers. The OSO4 staining technique can also be used with other active groups, such as polyurethanes.Many saturated or nonreactive polymers are not easily studied by transmission electron microscopy, unfortunately, because they cannot be stained. Other aspects of morphology, such as phase continuity and interface characteristics, are best determined by combining chemical and dynamic mechanical spectroscopy methods with electron microscopy. 

Precise quantifications are an important quality in molecular biology. There are slight differences in the methods used for global and targeted proteomics. In experiments intended to visualize as many proteins as possible, it is highly desirable to have a parallel quantification method that builds on the display technique. For 2D gel electrophoresis, fluorescent staining methods are under development (Urwin and Jackson, 1993), but they still lack overall sensitivity. Labeling proteins with radioactive isotopes is the most precise method for quantification but is limited to cell cultures, and alternatives are desirable. Recently, a precise method... 

There are a number of different silver staining methods. Some are available in kit form from various manufacturers. Others do not lend themselves to commercial kits. For a discussion of the mechanisms of silver staining, see Reference 54. Silver staining can be as much as 100 times more sensitive than CBB dye staining. All silver staining procedures have many manual steps and the decision as to when to terminate color development is quite subjective. 

Knratani, S., Tanaka, S., Ishikawa, Y., andZnkeran, C. (1988) Early development of the hypoglossal nerve in the chick embryo as observed by whole-mount nerve staining method. Am. J. Anal. 182,155-168. 

BS 903 Part A3384 is identical to ISO 3865. ASTM D92585 has methods for contact, migration and diffusion (equivalent to penetration) staining. The contact stain method is similar to ISO 3865 except that there is no provision for developing the stain by exposure to light. Migration stain is not measured at the same time. 

Characterization. The PPNVP and PPNVP/PEUU films were characterized by attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR), electron spectroscopy for chemical analysis (ESCA), ellipsometry, and water contact angles in air. Two independent methods, a modification of the radioimmunoassay used by Ziats, et. al. (14) and an immunochemical stain based on the ABC immunohistochemical staining method (15) were developed to assay the binding of GOx to the PPNVP/PEUU support. 

---