Re: Fwd: TRICLOROACETIC FORMULA
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From: | "J. A. Kiernan" <jkiernan@julian.uwo.ca> (by way of histonet) |
To: | histonet <histonet@magicnet.net> |
Reply-To: | |
Content-Type: | text/plain; charset="us-ascii" |
On Wed, 3 Mar 1999 OhioHisto@aol.com wrote:
> Can someone reply to Jose's questions regarding a decalcifier using
> trichloroacetic acid.
> > Please reply to: E-Mail: tisular@telcel.net.ve
Trichloroacetic acid (TCA) = Cl3CCOOH
Precipitates proteins. Ingredient of Heidenhain's SUSA fixative.
Really nasty stuff. Makes holes in your skin. Be very careful
weighing it out. It dissolves easily in atmospheric water, so
a bottle of solid TCA often contains a saturated solution. You
can treat this as 120% TCA in making up mixtures.
TCA can also extract nucleic acids from tissue.
I can see no good reason to use TCA for decalcifying. Formic
acid is probably the best general-purpose decalcifier. Adjust
to pH 2 and there should be no adverse effects on ordinary
staining methods.
John A. Kiernan,
Department of Anatomy & Cell Biology,
The University of Western Ontario,
LONDON, Canada N6A 5C1
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