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Staining is an auxiliary technique used in microscopy to enhance contrast in the microscopic image. Stains and dyes are frequently used in biology and medicine to highlight structures in biological tissues for viewing, often with the aid of different microscopes. Stains may be used to define and examine bulk tissues (highlighting, for example, muscle fibers or connective tissue), cell populations (classifying different blood cells, for instance), or organelles within individual cells. In biochemistry it involves adding a class-specific (DNA, proteins, lipids, carbohydrates) dye to a substrate to qualify or quantify the presence of a specific compound. Staining and fluorescent tagging can serve similar purposes. Biological staining is also used to mark cells in flow cytometry, and to flag proteins or nucleic acids in gel electrophoresis. Simple staining is staining with only one stain/dye. There are various kinds of multiple staining, many of which are examples of counterstaining, differential staining, or both, including double staining and triple staining. Staining is not limited to biological materials, it can also be used to study the morphology of other materials for example the lamellar structures of semi-crystalline polymers or the domain structures of block copolymers. == ''In vivo'' vs ''In vitro'' == ''In vivo'' staining (also called vital staining or intravital staining) is the process of dyeing living tissues—''in vivo'' means "in life" (compare with ''in vitro'' staining). By causing certain cells or structures to take on contrasting colour(s), their form (morphology) or position within a cell or tissue can be readily seen and studied. The usual purpose is to reveal cytological details that might otherwise not be apparent; however, staining can also reveal where certain chemicals or specific chemical reactions are taking place within cells or tissues. ''In vitro'' staining involves colouring cells or structures that have been removed from their biological context. Certain stains are often combined to reveal more details and features than a single stain alone. Combined with specific protocols for fixation and sample preparation, scientists and physicians can use these standard techniques as consistent, repeatable diagnostic tools. A counterstain is stain that makes cells or structures more visible, when not completely visible with the principal stain. * For example, crystal violet stains only Gram-positive bacteria in Gram staining. A safranin counterstain is applied that stains all cells, allowing identification of Gram-negative bacteria. While ex vivo, many cells continue to live and metabolize until they are "fixed". Some staining methods are based on this property. Those stains excluded by the living cells but taken up by the already dead cells are called vital stains (e.g. trypan blue or propidium iodide for eukaryotic cells). Those that enter and stain living cells are called supravital stains (e.g. New Methylene Blue and Brilliant Cresyl Blue for reticulocyte staining). However, these stains are eventually toxic to the organism, some more so than others. Partly due to their toxic interaction inside a living cell, when supravital stains enter a living cell, they might produce a characteristic pattern of staining different from the staining of an already fixed cell (e.g. "reticulocyte" look versus diffuse "polychromasia"). To achieve desired effects, the stains are used in very dilute solutions ranging from to (Howey, 2000). Note that many stains may be used in both living and fixed cells. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「staining」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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