Reticulin Silver Plating Kit acc. to Gordon & Sweet

Safe and Economic Staining of Reticular Fibers

Merck has introduced an environmentally friendly, ready-to-use kit to visualize reticular fibers for up to 110 paraffin sections per kit. Reticular fibers can be observed in basal membranes and support membranes, as well as around epithelial layers, capillaries and peripheral nerve fibers; they are also found in the liver, kidney or other hematopoietic organs. To provide both flexibility and steadiness to the organs and the surrounding tissue, the fibers build a highly ordered cellular network. The fibers consist of, among others, woven strands of type III collagen, which is high in glycoprotein. The glycoprotein content, the verifiability of glycoprotein by Periodic-Acid-Schiff and its affinity to silver salt all enable the Reticulin silver plating kit acc. to Gordon & Sweet to stain the reticular fibers black. This improves and facilitates detectablility, especially in comparison to hematroxylin and eosin methods.

The Reticulin silver plating kit contains eight reagents, which are all boxed in 30 ml dropping bottles. To optimize consumption costs and prevent environmental pollution, they must be trickled very sparingly. One reticulin silver staining kit is therefore sufficient for up to 110 paraffin sections. Furthermore, the reticulin silver staining kit is a CE-certified IVD-registered product, thus providing the best safety standards. Additionally, to further improve the result, the reticulin silver staining kit can be enhanced with nuclear fast red-aluminum sulfate solution 0.1%. Again, this improves the contrast and facilitates the detectability of reticular fibers. Fibers are stained.black, while the nuclei, collagens and background are stained red.

Tissue Sections for Verification of Reticular Fiber Staining

Sometimes uncertainty can arise when analyzing stained tissue samples. Having a control to compare against can help to increase confidence in your results. The ISOSLIDE®  Reticulin control slides is a box that is intended for the silver plating of reticular fibers. The slides can be stained using with Merck’s Reticulin silver plating kit acc. to Gordon & Sweets. Alternatively, you can use your laboratory’s own method. By including a control slide during your staining process, you have a positive sample to compare with your own tissue specimens.

Each box contains 25 serial tissue slides prepared from the same block of animal tissue. The slides have a 5-year shelf life. One control slide is pre-stained using the Reticulin silver plating reaction, the rest are unstained. Detailed instructions for reticular fiber staining are also included with the kit. ISOSLIDE® control slides are also helpful when it comes to lab accreditation. They are CE-certified, IVDs accompanied by comprehensive quality and process documentation that can be used during an audit.