An alternative high output tissue microarray technique

Abstract

BackgroundTissue microarray (TMA) is a high throughput research tool, which has greatly facilitated and accelerated in situ tissue analyses. However, its productivity has been restricted due to the confined thickness of traditional donor block. Here, we introduce an improved high output TMA method that is applicable to a broader range of tissue samples.MethodsIn this method, a 3.6 cm long and 2.7 cm wide recipient block with 88 square lattices (3 mm in width) was first prepared using several commercial instruments. A 2 mm wide and 6 mm long tissue rod was then prepared using a self-made blade-shaped knife from each paraffin embedded donor block of gastrointestinal stromal tumors. These rods were manually arrayed one by one into the corresponding lattices of the 60°C pre-softened recipient block with the guide of holes drilled with a steel needle. A 70-rod TMA was made to testify this method.ResultsThe prepared TMA had well defined array configurations, good tissue morphology and fully preserved proteins and DNA. A total of 500–1000 TMA sections could be easily obtained from a TMA block.ConclusionThis low-cost and time-saving method provides an alternative sampling tool for high output TMA.Virtual SlidesThe virtual slide(s) for this article can be found here: http://www.diagnosticpathology.diagnomx.eu/vs/1979605867857990

The prognostic value of EGFR overexpression and amplification in Esophageal squamous cell Carcinoma

“…The tissue microarray (TMA) was constructed as previously described [ 20 ]. Briefly, the region of interest (2 mm wide and 6 mm long) was extracted and then vertically planted into the recipient block one by one according to the corresponding location indicated by letters and numbers.…”

An introduction of an easy-operating and economical technique for tissue microarray preparation

“…The ACRs of the HE digital image and the TMA paraffin block in our research were calculated, and also the ACRs with evaluable images in the references 4–6. The results are as shown in table 2 and figure 3.…”

“…The publications were reviewed and searched with the term ‘tissue microarray’ on PubMed. Several other manual methods have also been described3–10 (table 1), and a series of TMA preparation methods were reviewed by Vogel 11…”

“…In most of the manual methods in table 1,4–7 the TMA spots are of varied shapes and askew arrangement, since no device is used to assist punching to guarantee accuracy. Some others are neat and ordered,9 10 as they rely on self-made equipment to punch tissue rods vertically.…”

Paraffin-embedded Tissue Fragment Suspension (PETFS): A Novel Method for Quality Control Preparation in Immunohistochemistry

“…Thirdly, the trimming of the TMA before each preparation will inevitably lead to great loss of tissue samples. 10,11 We here developed PETFS, a novel, reliable approach in liquid form for quality control preparation in IHC. IHC against 28 antibodies had the identical staining pattern on both PETFS fragments and conventional sections from their parental blocks.…”