Immunohistochemistry

Immunohistochemistry (IHC) it involves the process of selectively identifying antigens in cells of a tissue section by exploiting the principle of antibodies binding specifically to antigens in biological tissues. IHC takes its name from the roots "immuno", which simply means antibodies used in the procedure, and "histo", means. Immunohistochemistry was been conceptualized by Albert Coons.

Chromogenic immunohistochemistry of a normal kidney targeting the protein CD10.

Sample Preparation

This involve proper tissue collection, fixation and sectioning. A solution of formalin is often used to fix tissue, but other methods may also be used.

Immunohistochemistry Media

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  Main staining patterns on chromogenic immunohistochemistry.

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  Immunofluorescence of human skin using an anti-IgA antibody. The skin is from a patient with Henoch–Schönlein purpura: IgA deposits are found in the walls of small superficial capillaries (yellow arrows). The pale wavy green area on top is the epidermis, the bottom fibrous area is the dermis.

• "Block" staining: strong nuclear and cytoplasmic expression in a continuous segment of cells.

• Chromogenic immunohistochemistry: The cell is exposed to a primary antibody (red) that binds to a specific antigen (purple square). The primary antibody binds a secondary (green) antibody that is chemically coupled to an enzyme (blue). The enzyme changes the color of the substrate to a more pigmented one (brown star).

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  Immunohistochemistry stain versus hematoxylin counterstain.

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  Positive and negative controls in immunohistochemistry. For this purpose, "internal" means tissue from the target patient, and "external" means that the tissue is from another patient.

• Chromogenic immunohistochemistry of a normal kidney targeting the protein CD10.