Fixative Advantages Disadvantages
Irritation of mucosa; Causes
Cheap & easy to prepare; Stable; dermatitis; Leaves pigments after
Penetrates tissue well; Frozen sections fixation; Reduces basophilic
10% Formalin
(HCHO) can be prepared with ease staining of nucleus
solution
Ideal for fixing autopsy specimens;
Preserves fat; Even fixation with little Slow tissue hardening; Faded red
shrinkage; Preserves tissue elements; color stain; Reduced metachromatic
Formol-Saline Suitable for dissection specimens reaction of amyloid
Solution
Rapid fixation with little shrinkage;
Preserves cytologic details; Deposits of mercuric chloride; No
Recommended for routine post-mortem frozen section cutting; Hinders x-ray
tissues; Ideal for silver reticulum use in decalcification endpoint
Formol-
Corrosive staining method determination
Solution
10% Buffered
Neutral
Formalin Not specified Not specified
Solution
Excellent for storing whole tissue
Formalin-
Sodium Acetate blocks Not specified
Solution
Formalin- Excellent for brain tissues for silver and
Ammonium
Bromide gold techniques Not specified
Solution
Formalin-
Alcohol Not specified Not specified
Solution
Tissue thickness limit; Tissues
become brittle if left too long; Takes
Good for nuclear studies of bacteria; time to remove in running water;
Even and rapid fixation Leaves mercuric deposits
Zenker’s Fluid
Recommended for pituitary, bone
marrow and spleen. Well-preserved
cytoplasmic granules. It will produce
better results for nuclear staining than
Zenker’s fluid. same with Zenker’s fluid
Helley’s Fluid
Recommended for embryonic tissues;
Little anatomical distortion; Preserves
glycogen; Useful for minute tissue Poor tissue penetration; Dissolves
fragments; Allows brilliant staining cytoplasmic structures if not
methods distorted; Distorts kidney tissues
Bouin’s Fluid
Poor penetration of red blood cells
and cytoplasmic granules; Mercury
Recommended for biopsy and skin deposits left behind; Cannot stain
tumor study; Rapid and even elastic tissues with Weigert’s
Heidenhain- penetration; Produces brilliant staining method
Susa’s Fixative
Formation of black granules in
Best for wet smear preparation; Better tissues; Renders tissue hard and
Schaudinn’s staining of nuclei and connective brittle; Difficulty in cutting frozen
Sublimated
Alcohol tissues; Little shrinkage sections; Lysis of red blood cells
Solution
Poor penetration; Tissue requires
Demonstrates and fixes fat prolonged washing; Solution
permanently; Requires small amount of deteriorates rapidly if glacial acetic
Flemming’s fixative acid is added
Fluid
Preserves mitochondria Golgi elements
Champy’s Fluid
Recommended for various tissue Deteriorates and darkens with time;
demonstrations; Good tissue Slow penetration; Poor preservation
Regaud’s penetration and hardening of fats
(Moller’s fluid)
Recommended for early degenerative Slow tissue penetration; Tends to
process study; Preserves myelin better bleach tissues; Poor glycogen
than buffered formalin preservation
Orth’s Fluid
Recommended for lymph glands and
biopsies; Rapid fixation and Excessive shrinkage and
dehydration; Good nuclear staining hemolysis; Dissolves fat
Carnoy’s Fluid
Recommended for fixing
mucopolysaccharides and
nucleoproteins; Better reaction in Excessive shrinkage; Only small
Newcomer’s Feulgen stain than Carnoy’s fluid pieces of tissue can be used
Fluid
Greater tissue hardening; Partial
lysis of red blood cells; Poor
Faster fixation time; Better glycogen preservation of iron-containing
Gendre’s preservation; Useful for sputum fixation pigments
Fixative
Fixes conjugated fats and lipids
permanently; Preserves cytoplasmic Expensive; Poor penetration; Easily
structures; Useful for electron reduced by organic matter and
microscopy sunlight; Highly volatile
Osmic Acid
Used for diagnosing rabies in brain Shrinkage and distortion; Dissolves
tissues; Study of water-diffusible fat; Rapid evaporation; Poor
enzymes glycogen preservation
Acetone
Fixes acid mucopolysaccharides and Formation of insoluble lead
connective tissue mucin carbonate
Lead Fixatives
