ANTIGEN RETRIEVAL FOR IMMUNOHISTOCHEMISTRY - STATUS AND NEED FOR GREATER STANDARDIZATION

Antigen retrieval (AR) describes a high-temperature unmasking method a s well as a nonheating method that is utilized prior to immunohistoche mical staining of fixed tissue sections with the goal of improving the quality of the resulting stain. The high-temperature method has been applied extensively to formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissue section s, the materials most commonly available to the surgical pathologist. Following the introduction of AR in 1991, there have been numerous art icles demonstrating the value of this method for routine immunohistoch emistry. More than 200 antibodies have been tested, with excellent imm unohistochemical staining in almost all instances. The principles of t he AR technique are reviewed, and emphasis is placed on standardizatio n and current application.