Tissue-Replacement Control Slides

Project goal: To develop a material that can absorb tissue stains at an intensity less variable than human tissue, and that can withstand the physical and chemical processes encountered in staining equipment. A limitation of histological staining technologies is the inherent variability in human tissue, which can cause deviation in staining results and introduce difficulties in cancer diagnoses.The team developed a material that can absorb stains more consistently than human tissue. The lower variability of the material means that it functions as a control slide to identify instrument-induced stain intensity variation in diagnostic assays. The design incorporates polymers and cellulose compounds tested to be compatible with the acidophilic and basophilic properties of hematoxylin and eosin stains. These materials are adhered to glass microscope slides in sections under 100 microns thick in order to allow cover-slipping. The assembled slides were tested in the HE 600 staining instrument to confirm their ability to withstand the various temperature and chemical conditions throughout the staining process. After staining, the material was subjected to image analysis to verify that the stained final product was less variable than the current control slides using human tissue.