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Paraffin-embedded Tissue Fragment Suspension (PETFS): A Novel Method for Quality Control Preparation in
Wei Ding1, Ke Huang, Bingjian Lü
1*Department of Surgical Pathology, the First Affiliated Hospital †Department of Surgical Pathology, the Affiliated Women's Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University §Department of Surgical Pathology, Hangzhou Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, P.R. China ‡Department of Pathology and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada.
Insights
A novel liquid quality control method, paraffin-embedded tissue fragment suspension (PETFS), offers a fast, cost-effective alternative for immunohistochemistry (IHC) staining in surgical pathology. PETFS ensures reliable IHC quality control with consistent staining patterns over time.
Area of Science:
- Surgical Pathology
- Biotechnology
- Histology
Background:
- Immunohistochemistry (IHC) is crucial in surgical pathology, requiring robust quality controls for accurate staining interpretation.
- Traditional IHC quality controls use pre-cut tissue sections, which can be cumbersome and time-consuming.
- There is a need for more efficient and accessible quality control methods in IHC.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop and validate a novel liquid-based quality control method for immunohistochemistry (IHC).
- To assess the stability and comparability of the novel quality control method over an extended period.
- To evaluate the clinical utility of the new method in breast cancer diagnostics.
Main Methods:
- Developed paraffin-embedded tissue fragment suspension (PETFS), a liquid preparation of tissue fragments from formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded blocks.
- Stored PETFS at 4°C for easy accessibility and applied directly to test slides via pipetting.
- Compared IHC staining patterns of PETFS with traditional control sections from original donor blocks.
Main Results:
- PETFS demonstrated comparable IHC staining patterns to conventional control sections.
- Consistent and specific IHC staining intensity was maintained in PETFS over a 180-day testing period.
- PETFS successfully served as quality controls for estrogen receptor, progesterone receptor, and C-erbB-2 in 240 breast invasive ductal carcinomas.
Conclusions:
- Paraffin-embedded tissue fragment suspension (PETFS) is a fast, low-cost, and robust quality control technique for routine IHC staining.
- PETFS requires less donor tissue compared to traditional methods, making it more efficient.
- The liquid format and stability of PETFS enhance its practicality for surgical pathology labs.
Abstract:
Immunohistochemistry (IHC) is one of the most important adjunctive techniques in surgical pathology. Quality controls are essential for staining interpretation. The most common controls are cut from the formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissue blocks in advance. In contrast, we developed paraffin-embedded tissue fragment suspension (PETFS), a novel method in liquid form, for quality control preparation. The liquid form controls were cut from the donor formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded paraffin blocks, stored in the 4°C fridge easily, and added to the top and bottom of the test slide directly by pipetting. The tissue fragments from the PETFS had a comparable IHC staining pattern to that of the control sections from the original donor blocks. Over a 180-day testing period, the IHC staining pattern and intensity remained strong and specific. The clinical value of PETFS method was further validated by their successful application as controls for the expression of estrogen receptor, progesterone receptor, and C-erbB-2 in 240 breast invasive ductal carcinomas. We concluded that PETFS is a fast, low-cost, and less donor tissue consumption robust technique as quality controls for routine IHC staining in surgical pathologic practice.
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