Tissue fixation and the effect of molecular fixatives on downstream staining procedures

It is impossible to underplay the importance of fixation in histopathology. Whether the scientist is interested in the extraction of information on lipids, proteins, RNA or DNA, fixation is critical to this extraction. This review aims to give a brief overview of the current state of play in fixation and focus on the effect fixation, and particularly the effect of the newer brand of molecular fixatives have on morphology, histochemistry, immunohistochemistry and RNA/DNA analysis. A methodology incorporating the creation of a fixation tissue microarray for the study of the effect of fixation on histochemistry is detailed. (C) 2014 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc.