On Fri, 18 Jun 1999, Hall, Phil wrote:

> I am trying a method for NADPH Diaphorase found in the literature.  The
> first step given is to fix in Zamboni solution.  Does anyone have the
> formula to make this up?

  It is strange that this solution has acquired Zamboni's name.
  The abstract by Zamboni & de Martino 1967 (J Cell Biol 35: 148A)
  does not state the composition of the mixture. It was given in
  detail by Stefanini, de Martino & Zamboni 1967 (Nature 216: 173-174) 
  but shouldn't that make it Stefanini's fixative? It was introduced
  for EM of spermatozoa, but Accini, Spiel & de Martino 1974
  (Histochemistry 42: 257-264) found that it preserved antigens well
  for subsequent EM immunohistochemistry. This makes de Martino the
  most consistent name in the history of the fixative.

  An interesting thing about this mixture is that although it
  provides better structural preservation than neutral buffered
  formaldehyde (paraffin sections of kidney, brain; Histochem J
  17: 1131-1146) the picrate in it does not precipitate
  proteins at the neutral pH of the solution. It is therefore
  completely different from Bouin and other fixatives that rely
  on the "coagulant" property of picric acid. Does anyone out there
  have some smart ideas about how neutral picrate might contribute
  to the protection of both structure and antigenicity?

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