Vol. 12, Special Issue 7 (2023)

Author(s):
Poonam, Mamta Kumari, Rashmi, Rahul Kumar, Kokila Himat and Subhita

Abstract:
As an aromatic hydrocarbon, the histology lab commonly uses xylene for stains, cover slipping, and tissue processing. Despite being a common clearing agent, it is highly toxic, carcinogenic, and potentially hazardous to histopathology lab technicians. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of coconut oil, groundnut oil, liquid paraffin, mustard oil, and sesame oil at various time intervals (Thirty minutes, Sixty minutes, and Ninety minutes) to observe the effect on clearing of tissues in comparison to xylene kept for thirty minutes. 48 tissue specimens of liver was gathered from carcass of goat, fixed in 10% NBS and sectioned into 6 groups, namely Group 1 control (Xylene), Group 2 (Coconut oil), Group 3 (Groundnut oil), Group 4 (Liquid paraffin), Group 5 (Mustard oil), and Group 6 (Sesame oil). Xylene-treated samples and natural alternatives-treated samples were evaluated and compared with xylene for clarity and ease of sectioning, and for staining quality, including nuclear staining, cytoplasmic staining, and overall staining quality. Statistically significant differences were not found in either section when the cellular details and staining quality were examined. At various time intervals (30 minutes, 60 minutes, 90 minutes), the natural alternatives were observed to achieve tissue clearing at par with xylene, so compared with toxic xylene, these alternatives may be used without compromising histopathological details.