CYTOCHEMISTRY OF HUMAN CATALASE - DEMONSTRATION OF HEPATIC AND RENAL PEROXISOMES BY A HIGH-TEMPERATURE PROCEDURE

The cytochemical demonstration of marker enzymes for subcellular organelles permits light microscopic analysis of their structure and function in normal and diseased tissues. Currently available staining procedures for the peroxidase activity of catalase in peroxisomes of plant and animal cells yield weak and inconsistent light microscopic staining when applied to human tissues. We have developed a simple and sensitive high temperature procedure that clearly and reproducibly stains these abundant, but poor understood, organelles in biopsy specimens of human liver and kidney. This method utilizes formaldehyde fixation, a modified diaminobenzine (DAB) medium, incubation at 45°C and postosmication for both light and electron microscopy.