A biochemical study of two bifunctional reagents as alternatives to formocresol

Two bifunctional reagents, glutaraldehyde and dimethylsuberimidate, were compared to formaldehyde with respect to fixation and modification of protein. Glutaraldehyde proved the superior fixative based on cross-linking and enzyme degradation assays. An immunoprecipitation assay suggests that the reaction products of glutaraldehyde may have altered antigenicity.