A simple technique to construct tissue macroarrays

Abstract

AimsIn the diagnostic or research field, there is a need that the histopathological evaluation provides as much information as possible, with the shortest time and lowest cost. The development of the tissue microarray (TMA) technology has significantly facilitated and accelerated studies with tissue analyses using in situ technologies. Nevertheless, one of the most recognised limitations of TMA is that the small cores used to construct a TMA may not accurately represent characteristics of the whole tissue specimen. The aim is to present the technical aspects of a simple system to construct tissue macroarrays (TMaAs), its advantages and limitations, and some results of its use in for research purposes.MethodsThe study presents three possibilities of preparing the specimens with up to 6 mm diameter to be included into the TMaA paraffin block using our method.ResultsWith this technique, it was possible to obtain glass slides with multiple whole fragments, which were used in five different studies.ConclusionsWe presented a method for construction of multi-TMaA paraffin blocks, which is very simple for optimising laboratory techniques requiring paraffin-embedded tissue sections and can be easily implemented in any institution with a histology laboratory.