Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 3, 2026
Recognition of Epidermal Transglutaminase by IgA and Tissue Transglutaminase 2 Antibodies in a Rare Case of Rhesus Dermatitis
Published on: December 15, 2011
Immunohistochemistry in research and diagnosis of celiac disease
1Laboratory for Immunohistochemistry and Immunopathology (LIIPAT), Institute of Pathology,The National Hospital, Oslo, Norway.
Insights
Immunohistochemistry and immunocytochemistry use labeled antibodies to detect antigens in tissues or cells. Distinguishing cell surface staining from cytoplasmic staining can be challenging in tissue sections.
Area of Science:
- Biotechnology
- Cell Biology
- Histology
Background:
- Immunohistochemistry (IHC) and immunocytochemistry (ICC) are vital techniques for detecting antigens in biological samples.
- Both methods utilize antibody-antigen interactions for visualization, typically in tissue sections (IHC) or cell preparations (ICC).
Purpose of the Study:
- To clarify the distinctions and applications of immunohistochemistry and immunocytochemistry.
- To highlight the challenges in interpreting cell surface staining in different sample types.
Main Methods:
- Immunohistochemistry involves immunostaining of tissue sections.
- Immunocytochemistry involves immunostaining of cells in suspension, smears, or monolayers.
- The core methodology relies on labeled antibodies to bind specific antigens in situ.
Main Results:
- Antibodies generally do not penetrate the surface membrane of living cells, yielding clear peripheral staining in suspensions or vital monolayers.
- Sensitivity for cell-surface staining in tissue sections is reduced due to decreased antigen representation.
- Distinguishing peripheral from cytoplasmic staining in tissue sections can be difficult for certain markers.
Conclusions:
- Unequivocal peripheral staining is best achieved with immunocytochemistry on vital cells.
- Interpretation of immunohistochemistry requires careful consideration of potential cytoplasmic antigen overlap.
- Understanding these technical nuances is crucial for accurate antigen localization and interpretation.
Abstract:
Immunohistochemistry comprises methods used to recognize tissue components as antigens in situ by means of directly or indirectly labeled antibodies, usually (but not always) derived from another species. When applied to cell preparations, the same methods are called immunocytochemistry (Fig. 1), although some authors also use this term for immunostaining of cellular components in tissue sections. Note that compared with immunostaining of vital cells in suspension or cultured monolayers, the sensitivity of immunohistochemical cell-surface staining is considerably reduced because of the decreased amounts of marker antigen represented by the cross-section of the plasma membrane. Also, for certain cellular markers examined in a tissue section, truly peripheral staining may be difficult to distinguish from a rim of cytoplasmic antigen expression. Fig. 1. Immunohistochemistry (A) is performed on tissue sections whereas immunocytochemistry (B) is performed on cells in suspensions, smears, or monolayers. Antibodies do not penetrate the surface membrane of living cells; therefore, unequivocal peripheral staining is obtained only for cells in suspension or vital monolayers. With tissue sections or dried (and fixed) cells, it is difficult to distinguish peripheral from cytoplasmic immunostaining unless the antigen is a distinct surface membrane marker.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
01:22Immunocytochemistry and Immunohistochemistry
These...
01:30Inflammatory Bowel Disease III: Diagnostic Studies and Management I-Nutritional Therapy
Diagnostic studies
A colonoscopy is the definitive screening test, distinguishing ulcerative colitis from other colon diseases with similar symptoms. During a colonoscopy test, inflamed mucosa with exudate ulcerations can be observed, and biopsies are taken to determine the histologic characteristics of the colonic...