Correlation of histology and ultrastructure in pathology specimens

AbstractA method of preparing frozen sections of surgical specimens for electron microscopy is presented together with a technique by which the histology, enzyme histochemistry and ultrastructure of selected parts of a lesion may be correlated. This procedure involves the embedding of 10–30 μm sections in Epon between Perspex® slides after the removal of which the tissue may be inspected in the light microscope and small areas ringed by a steel marker. These are sawn out and sectioned for ultrastructural examination. The use of this procedure is illustrated first with reference to a zone of hyperplastic, but not dysplastic, vaginal epithelium, parts of which were shown histochemically to contain strong glucose‐6‐phosphate dehydrogenase activity. Electron microscopy of the epithelium‐connective tissue junction in these areas revealed epithelial cytoplasmic processes and an accompanying loss or duplication of the basal lamina. In a second example, accumulations of gutta percha in the epithelium of a dental cyst were shown to be surrounded by a thin layer, the ultrastructure of which resembled previously published electron micrographs of hyalin bodies. It is considered that techniques such as those described may render biopsies of greater potential in research without impairing their diagnostic value.