We routinely store our tissues in 70 percent ethanol to preserve
antigenicity.

Tim Morken, BA, EMT(MSA), HTL(ASCP)
Infectious Disease Pathology Activity
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Ms-G32
1600 Clifton Road
Atlanta, GA 30333
USA

PH: 404-639-3964
FAX: 404-639-3043

email: tim9@cdc.gov



-----Original Message-----
From: Jan Shivers [mailto:shive003@maroon.tc.umn.edu]
Sent: Thursday, May 03, 2001 4:02 PM
To: HistoNet Server
Subject: IHC storage alcohol


Usually the tissue samples I receive have been optimally fixed (time-wise)
in formalin and promptly embedded into paraffin.  Today I received a call
from a researcher out of state who wants to send me some samples, but cannot
get his fixed tissue processed into paraffin within a 24-hour period after
start of fixation.  He wants to know what storage alcohol he should switch
the samples into until embedding, and I became brain-dead.  Can someone help
me out here PDQ?  Is it 70% ethanol or some other percentage?  Is there a
better storage medium than ethanol?  I have received some cases in PBS
(post-formalin-fixation), but those staining results were less than optimal.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Jan Shivers
Univ. of Minn. Vet. Diag. Lab