On Wed, 21 Jun 2000 cklein@mail.mdanderson.org wrote:

> Has anybody heard of and/or used the new fixative called S.T.F. ?  
> I believe it might also go by the name Davidson's STF. 

  The name Davidson's is used for a fixative containing formaldehyde,
  acetic acid and alcohol. There is nothing new about it; it has been
  in use for about 50 years. It has been the subject of numerous
  HistoNet questions and answers (try the Archives), and there is
  a section of Dr R. Richmond's web page that explains it in some
  detail (http://members.aol.com/RSRICHMOND/histology.html).

  It isn't obvious how "S.T.F." would be one of the many 
  formal-acetic-alcohol mixtures (often called AFA or FAA).
  Perhaps it's something else.  If you intend to use it for
  research or any other serious purpose, do so only if you
  know its exact composition and the reasons for the presence
  of the various ingredients. Fixation greatly affects results
  in all microscopic work.  It's necessary to be able to
  defend one's findings with references to papers in the
  regular peer-reviewed literature, especially if a "new" or
  otherwise unconventional fixative is used. 

 John A. Kiernan,
 Department of Anatomy & Cell Biology,
 The University of Western Ontario,
 LONDON,  Canada  N6A 5C1