title: Staining properties and stability of a standardised Romanowsky stain.
abstract: An evaluation of the standardised Romanowsky stain of Marshall et al. has been made in a routine haematology laboratory. It was noted that this stain had several advantages over the May-Grünwald Giemsa stain used in most British laboratories. These advantages include ease and speed of preparation, a shorter staining time, and reproducibility of results. These results are described in detail. The stability of the stock stain solution and of the 'working' stain (stock + buffer) has been studied by, respectively, thin-layer chromatography and visible spectroscopy. No change was detected in the composition of the stock solution at ambient temperature over a period of six months. Stability was unaffected by the composition of the container (polyethylene, PyrexTM, or soda-glass) or by daylight. The 'working' solution was stable for 3 hours. Thereafter a precipitate is formed, consisting of thiazine dyes and eosin in a molar ratio of approximately 2:1.
mesh_terms: D002855:Chromatography, Thin Layer; D005069:Evaluation Studies as Topic; D012996:Solutions; D013057:Spectrum Analysis; D013194:Staining and Labeling / Q000592:standards; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D012996:Solutions