Tinctorial staining of amyloid is one of the oldest methods for the
identification of amyloid deposits. Iodine was first discovered by Bernard
Coutois in 1811. The name iodine was derived from the Greek-Iodes (like a
violet) and named as an element by Gay Lussac (1813). Virchow (1853) was
first to describe the purple/blue staining of gross deposits of what he
called cellulose (known today as amyloid) with acidified iodine. 

Frozen sections are placed into acidified Lugol's iodine for 1 minute,
rinsed in DH20 and mounted in glycerol becoming birefringent.

Acidified Lugol's Iodine

Iodine             1.0 g.
Potassium iodide   2.0 g.
0.1 M HCL          4.0 ml.
DH2O                96 ml.


Eric C. Kellar
University of Pittsburgh Medical Center



-----Original Message-----
From: McManis, Kathleen
To: 'histonet@pathology.swmed.edu'
Sent: 9/20/99 3:03 PM
Subject: iodine stain

Hi!

I am looking for a iodine stain, used on fresh tissue for the staining
of
amyloid. Any help would be appreciated.  Thanks