Carlos A. Muro-Cacho, M.D., Ph.D.

Department of Pathology, H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute and University of South Florida College of Medicine, Tampa, Florida, USA

Received 1/10/97 Accepted 7/15/97

2. INTRODUCTION

The last decade has witnessed a continuous revolution in molecular biology methods and the parallel development of a competitive biotechnology industry that has made available high quality reagents and sophisticated equipments at a progressively lower cost. This has allowed the routine use, by many laboratories, of state-of-the-art procedures that would be otherwise restricted to highly specialized basic science research groups. The adaptation of some of these procedures, to the detection of nucleic acids in cells and tissues, converts genetic information into a visual signal that can be evaluated In situ while preserving cellular integrity and tissue morphology (1-16). This signal can then be evaluated in the context of a homogeneous or heterogeneous cell population, a given cellular compartment, or a particular pathological tissue change. In situ PCR is also known as PCR In situ (1), PCR ISH (2), In-cell PCR (3), and PCR-driven ISH (4), and for those modifications intended to amplify mRNA, RT In situ PCR (5) or In situ cDNA PCR (6) (appendix 1 and figure 1).

Figure 1. In situ PCR protocols for tissue sections

Abbreviations: PCR = Polymerase Chain Reaction, RT = Reverse Transcription, ISH = In situ Hybridization, IHC = Immunohistochemistry