This is an example of the Verhoeff-van Gieson staining routine, another combination method. It's a large artery (the structure of arteries and veins is dealt with in Exercise 12). The Verhoeff component of this two part stain is specific for elastic fibers. The Van Gieson stain (Ira van Gieson, 1865-1913, an American bacteriologist) is specific for collagen. This combination permits you to distinguish two types of CT elements in the wall of this artery: the black strands are elastic fibers and the bright red material is the reinforcing collagen. In addition to these CT elements, there's a lot of smooth muscle in the wall of this artery, which is stained a somewhat duller red than the bright crimson of the collagen. As with other combined stains, it provides structural information that the single components alone can't; and complements the general structural stains such as H&E.
Dog aorta; VVG stain, paraffin section, 100x
| H&E | PAS | Masson's CT Stain | Verhoeff-van Gieson | Verhoeff-Masson | Mallory's CT Stain | Golgi Stain|
| Cresyl Violet | Cresyl Violet-Luxol Fast Blue | Kluver-Barrera | Fontana-Masson | Prussian Blue | Toluidine Blue|
|Osmium Tetroxide | Oil Red O | Sudan Black | Fluorescent & Enzymatic Tagging |
