I would suggest making sure your xylene or xylene substitute is fresh.
Maybe the deparaffinization is not complete?
hh

> -----Original Message-----
> From:	Bill Sinai [SMTP:bills@icpmr.wsahs.nsw.gov.au]
> Sent:	Tuesday, September 04, 2001 7:36 PM
> To:	Aidan Schurr; histonet@pathology.swmed.edu
> Subject:	Re: unusual artefact
> 
> 
> Not so unusual artefact!
> 
> Aidan,
> 
> This appears as a common artefact worldwide, we too have recently had this
> problem in several slides in the middle of a batch of H&E staining.
> It comes and goes, sometimes many slides and sometimes only a few.  We
> have
> not been able to relate it to any particular happening or condition or
> circumstance.  We find it particularly noticable in cervical material
> although the last case was a colonic polyp.
> Good luck in finding an answer.
> 
> Sorry not to be of help.
> Bill Sinai
> Laboratory Manager
> Tissue Pathology
> ICPMR
> P.O. Box 533
> Wentworthville NSW 2145
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~`
> Subject: unusual artefact
> 
> 
> hi all,
> 
> I have recently struck a strange staining artefact where the tissue has
> patches where the haematoxylin doesn't seem to have been taken up.  The
> size
> seems to vary from a dozen or so cells across to 10 or more times that
> size.
> The eosin staining appears to be normal in these areas.  Nothing should
> have
> changed in our staining protocol, but I was wondering if anyone has any
> suggestions.
> 
> My thought so far are:  hot plates too hot, contaminated xylene, 95 and
> 100%
> alcohols transposed, dud batch of haematoxylin (long shot).
> 
> Can anyone help?
> 
> Cheers,
> Aidan
> 
> 
> __
> 
> aidan schurr  b.m.l.sc
> section head, histology
> hutt valley district health board
> lower hutt
> new zealand
> 
> aidan.schurr@hvh.co.nz
> ++64 4 570 9173
> 
> 
>