Histopathology and Diagnostic Cytology Flashcards

Flashcards covering key vocabulary and concepts from histopathology and diagnostic cytology lectures.

Proteins

Basic component of living cells made of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, and amino acid chains linked by peptide bonds.

Simple Proteins

Yield amino acids and occasional small carbohydrate compounds on hydrolysis. Examples: albumins, globulins, enzymes, histones.

Conjugated Proteins

Simple proteins combined with non-protein material. Examples: lipoproteins, mucoproteins, glycoproteins.

Derived Proteins

Proteins derived from simple or conjugated proteins by physical or chemical means, such as denatured proteins.

Fibrous Proteins

Proteins forming muscle fiber, tendons, connective tissue. Examples: actin, collagen, elastin.

Globular Proteins

Water-soluble proteins with functions including transporting, catalyzing, and regulating. Examples: albumins, globulins, hemoglobin.

Membrane Proteins

Proteins relaying signals, allowing cell interaction and transporting molecules. Examples: c-myc, estrogen receptor, histones.

Basophilic Dyes

Attracted to acidic substances (mitochondria, collagen) and are positively charged at physiologic pH.

Feulgen stain

Attracted to acidic substances and results in purple staining.

Methyl green-pyronin method

Stains DNA green or blue-green and RNA rose-red.

Fluorochromes

Fluorescent dyes emitting light when excited by shorter wavelengths.

Reticulin stains

Silver stains based on the argyrophilic properties of reticulin fibers.

Collagen

Forms a coarser extracellular framework; found in ligaments, tendons, cartilage, and bone.

Van Gieson's Stain

Simplest method of differentially staining collagen using picric acid and acid fuchsin. Collagen stains dark red.

Masson's Trichrome Stain

Technique producing three colors. Nuclei are stained blue, cytoplasm red, and collagen green or blue.

Gomori's One-Step Trichrome Stain

One-step method combining plasma stain and connective tissue fiber stain in phosphotungstic acid solution.

Mallory's Aniline Blue Stain

Method used to differentiate acidophilic extracellular fibers from acidophilic cytoplasm, using acid fuchsin, aniline blue and orange G.

Azocarmine Stain

Heidenhain's modification of Mallory's aniline blue stain, showing minute details of connective tissue.

Elastic fibers

Composed of elastin and offer flexibility; found in skin and blood vessel walls.

Weigert's Resorcin-Fuchsin Elastic Tissue Stain

Stain where tissue is placed in Weigert's stain, differentiated with acid-alcohol, and counterstained.

Verhoeff's Elastic Method

Stain with a soluble lake of hematoxylin ferric chloride-iodine

Stain with regressive hematoxylin, differentiating using excess mordant.

VVG Staining Protocol

Stains elastic fibers and mast cells on formalin-fixed tissue.

Luna Staining

Basement Membranes

Provides a resilient matrix; commonly demonstrated with silver stain employing methenamine silver solution.

Congo Red

Dye which gives amyloid a deep pink to red color with green birefringence under polarizing lens.

Alkaline Congo red Technique

Technique using alkaline alcoholic solvents and high salt concentrations to stain amyloid red.

Fluorescent dye staining

A fluorescent dye staining technique for various materials, including amyloid.

Lieb's Crystal Violet Method

Technique to identify chromosomal material or DNA in cell specimens using acid hydrolysis.

Enzyme Histochemistry

Detects early metabolic changes in biopsy and autopsy tissue. Finds specific enzymes in tissues and identify proteins using antibodies

Chilled Acetone

Fixative utilized for preserving enzyme activity

Oxidative enzymes

enzymes where the substrate reacts with oxygen from the air.

Dehydrogenases

Enzymes removing hydrogen from substrate and transferring hydrogen along an oxidative pathway

Methylene Blue, Tetrazolium Method, and Tellurite Method

Visualizing reagents for dehydrogenase activity

Oxidases

Enzymes catalyzing oxidation reactions acting on phenols and amines using molecular oxygen

Peroxidases

Heme-containing enzymes using hydrogen peroxide as an electron acceptor

Hydrolytic Enzymes

Enzymes using water to break down complex molecules into simpler units via precipitation reactions.

Alkaline Phosphatases

Enzymes actively breaking down at pH ~9; uses calcium phosphate method

technique in tissues. The cells and regions containing the enzyme appear black

Gomori calcium method to detect alkaline phosphatase

Acid Phosphatases

Enzymes actively breaking down at pH ~5; uses lead phosphate method

Gomori Lead Method

enzymes where ACP releases phosphate _ions and reacts them with lead phosphate

lead phosphate treatment to become become visible insoluble brown lead sulfide precipitate

Lead Method Enzymes

ATPase

Highlighting the Types of the muscle fibers based on pH levels

Nonspecific Esterases

Identifies cells with nonspecific esterase using a-naphthyl acetate

Acetylcholinesterase

Enzymes that hydrolyzes choline and acetic acid found in nerve cells, tissue and blood cells

Phosphorylases

Enzyme catalyzing glycogen breakdown into glucose-1-phosphate.

Aldolases

Splits hexose diphosphate into two molecules of triose phosphate. Liberated as visualized alkaline phosphate

Sulfatases

Enzymes hydrolyzing sulfates. released sufate is precipitated by benzidine and visualized using naphthoquinone sulfonate

Antigen

Molecule that induces the formation of an antibody.

Epitope

The part of an antigen that is recognized by the immune cells.

Paratope

Antibody determinant

Affinity

Strength of the bond between one antigen site and one antibody site

Avidity

Total strength when multiple bonds form between an antibody and an antigen

Immunohistochemistry

immunologic techniques that make use of antigen - antibody interactions

Polyclonal Antibodies

Antibodies produced by immunizing animals with a purified antigen (immunogen), common host animals include Rabbit

Monoclonal Antibodies

Type of Antibody Produced by a single clone of plasma cells Derived using hybridoma technology, bind to a single epitope, Commonly produced in mice

PROTEOLYTIC ENZYME DIGESTION

Unmasks antigenic sites hidden by formalin fixation in paraffin-embedded tissues.

Heat-Induced Epitope Retrieval (HIER)

Heat breaks protein cross-links formed during fixation Buffers (e.g., EDTA, Citrate) help remove calcium ions and expose epitopes

Pressure Cooking Antigen Retrieval

Alternative antigen retrieval is more uniform than heating via Microwaving

Positive Control

Section that is known to contain the antigen and is proven

Negative Control

Section that can be completed from the tissue in which it does not contain the target antigen

Internal Tissue Control

Also named as built in control and eliminates the variable of tissue fixation between specimens and controls

CHROMOGENIC METHOD

Method to detect proteins (antigens) in tissue using color-producing (chromogenic) reactions.

DIRECT

labeling method for Primary antibody being directly and immediately binded

ENHANCED POLYMER ONE-STEP STAINING (EPOS) METHOD

labeling method for enhanced and advanced sensitivity for direct antibodies

INDIRECT

Involves more than one and mutiple antibody step and signal amplifications

THREE-STEP INDIRECT TECHNIQUE

More amplification and signal for increased sensetivity

Soluble Enzyme Immune Complex Techniques

Use preformed enzyme-anti-enzyme complexes when direct enzyme labeling isnt suitable

PEROXIDASE-ANTIPEROXIDASE (PAP) TECHNIQUE

An indirect enzyme-complex method for detecting antigens in tissue sections.

AVIDIN-BIOTIN COMPLEX (ABC) TECHNIQUES

Amplifies signal by exploiting this strong avidin-biotin interaction

Avidin

Antibodies derived from egg-whites

LABELED STREPTAVIDIN BIOTIN TECHNIQUE (LSAB PROCEDURE)

technique that has demonstrated 4 to 8 times greater sensitivity compared to the traditional avidin-biotin complex (ABC) method

IMMUNOFLUORESCENCE METHOD

immunofluorescence technique due to its ability to produce high-resolution images for protein localization and to quantify fluorescent signals effectively.

IN-SITU HYBRIDIZATION (ISH)

In situ detect specific nucleic acid sequences (DNA or RNA) in tissue samples using a labeled nucleic acid probe that binds complementary target sequences

DIAGNOSTIC CYTOLOGY

Microscopic examination of cells from different body sites for diagnostic purposes.

Air-drying

Must be avoided in smears for neoplasia detection. Must be required in blood and bone-marrow

Exfoliative Cytology

Microscopic study of cells that have been desquamated from epithelial surfaces.

Impression Smear

Used for ulcerated surface lesions to allow immediate assessment of the lesion before fixation and tissue processing

Serous Effusion

fluid accumulated in the three serous cavities (pleural, pericardial and peritoneal).

Cell Suspension

Optimum amount is 20-30 mL and Centrifugation is utilized

fixation for Urine Cell samples

spray fixative or an aqueous-alcoholic solution. Optimal fixation is done using 95% ethyl-alcohol for 3-5 minutes

Wet Fixation

Process of submerging freshly prepared smears in a liquid fixative. 95% Ethyl Alcohol

TRANSFORMATIONAL ZONE

To detect cervical carcinoma and precancerous lesions of the cervix that may arise from the junction of endocervical/ectocervical mucosa

Mature Superficial Cells

Exhibits true acidophilia (Estrogen influence) Measures 45-50 um in diameter with pyknotic nuclei

Papanicolaou Stain

Pap Stain to Differentiate cells in bodily secretion to display hues from the entire spectrum (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and violet)

Papanicolaou Stain (Original)

Nuclear stain that will stain blue/black with cytoplasm blue/green

May-Grunwald Giemsa Stain

Common Romanowsky stain used in cytology in studying cell morphology using air-dried smears

Papanicolaou Stain

routine staining procedure in cytopathology laboratory