Eosinophilic
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Template:Stack end Eosinophilic (Greek suffix -phil, meaning eosin-loving) describes the staining of tissues, cells, or organelles after they have been washed with eosin, a dye commonly used in histological staining.
Eosin is an acidic dye for staining cell cytoplasm, collagen, and muscle fibers.<ref name="Tubbs">Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="Sharma">Template:Cite book</ref> Eosinophilic describes the appearance of cells and structures seen in histological sections that take up the staining dye eosin.<ref name="Sharma"/> Such eosinophilic structures are, in general, composed of protein.<ref name="Leong">Template:Cite book</ref>
Eosin is usually combined with a stain called hematoxylin to produce a hematoxylin- and eosin-stained section (also called an H&E stain, HE or H+E section). It is the most widely used histological stain for a medical diagnosis.<ref name="Leong"/> When a pathologist examines a biopsy of a suspected cancer, they will stain the biopsy with H&E.
Some structures seen inside cells are described as being eosinophilic; for example, Lewy and Mallory bodies.<ref>Eosinophilic. Medline Plus. Accessed March 2nd, 2012.</ref> Some cells are also described as eosinophilic, such as Leukocytes.<ref name=Dixon>Template:Cite book</ref>
See also
- Basophilic (affinity to hematoxylin)
- Eosinophil
- Eosinophilia
- Eosinophilic meningitis
- Acidophile (histology)
References
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