Re: alternate stain for b & b

From:RSRICHMOND@aol.com

The older tissue Gram stains required diethyl ether, or acetone, both of them 
fire and explosion hazards.

The Brown-Hopps stain, usually cited from the AFIP manual (3rd ed. 1968, page 
224), uses ethylene glycol monoethyl ether (trade name Cellosolve) as a 
differentiating agent. This material, although an ether, is not a fire 
hazard. (Ethers are a class of chemical compounds of widely varying 
properties. The term "ether' by itself usually means diethyl ether, the 
now-banned anesthetic agent and notorious refrigerator bomber.)

I have seen this stain perform in many laboratories, and have gotten it set 
up more than once. Pathologists put far too much reliance on tissue-section 
Gram stains, which are much less reliable than their microbiological 
counterparts. If you're just looking for bacteria, you're much better off 
with a simple thiazine dye such as the Diff-Quik II technique commonly used 
for Helicobacter pylori.

Bob Richmond
Samurai Pathologist
Knoxville TN




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