A procedure to obtain long-lasting fluorescence in formaldehyde fixed tissues.

The authors made a study of the small intestine by immunofluorescence in 5% phosphate-buffered formaldehyde fixed tissues, using the Nairn (1976) technique associated with Evans blue (Fry and Wilkinson 1963). The ability of the sections to fluoresce has been maintained after a storage time of more than 4 years. Similar very good results were obtained when skin biopsies from pemphigus foliaceus patients were fixed in formaldehyde for two h and afterwards washed in 30% sucrose solution for 12 to 18 h.