Ta. Cowles et al., IDENTIFICATION OF ABNORMAL CHROMOSOMAL COMPLEMENT IN FORMALIN-FIXED, PARAFFIN-EMBEDDED PLACENTAL TISSUE, Prenatal diagnosis, 15(1), 1995, pp. 21-26
The objective of this project was to assess the efficacy of fluorescen
ce in situ hybridization (FISH) with chromosome-specific DNA probes to
identify chromosome number in formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded place
ntal specimens. Using this approach, 75 per cent of the karyotypes in
20 formalin-fixed placental samples (comprising aneuploids, triploids,
and normals) were correctly identified. As this technology improves,
the ability to obtain information regarding chromosomal abnormalities
in formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded placental tissue should improve a
s well. This technology can potentially provide important cytogenetic
information even when fresh tissue is not available for standard karyo
typic analysis.