[Expected usefulness of in situ hybridization for clinical pathology]

In situ hybridization technique was developed as molecular-histological usefulness at 1980's. To consider usefulness in the clinical pathology, we should recognize avairabilities of recent techniques such as DNA tip. The characteristic to in situ hybridization is summarized as follows. 1. Diagnosable gene expression pattern with histological feature in the section. 2. Need small amount of sample for hybridization. 3. Easy to distinguish expression of genes that show highly homologies. Previously, we developed non-radioisotopic in situ hybridization by digoxigenin-UTP labeled cRNA probe. The sensitivity and resolution are sufficient for detecting 50 copies mRNA in individual cells. This technique is expected to utilize for molecular diagnosis in clinical field in the near future.