Chrome Alum Gallocyanin : A Potential Haematoxylin Substitute for Histological Sections

A synthetic dye gallocyanin was tested as a haematoxylin substitute. Chrome-alum gallocyanin was substituted for Harris' haematoxylin in the routine haematoxylin & eosin procedure, and for Weigert's iron alum haematoxylin in Masson's trichrome and Picro-Mallory's quadrachrome methods. The staining results of gallocyanin and haematoxylin for these methods were compared and assessed. The results showed that gallocyanin exhibits excellent selective nuclear staining properties comparable with or better than haematoxylin. The potential of gallocyanin as a haematoxylin substitute is discussed.