Ace Therapeutics offers immunohistochemical analysis for psychiatry research, as well as a flexible solution based on customer feedback. This easy-to-use solution helps tissue technicians and anatomical pathology laboratories manage activities efficiently, saving personnel time and resource costs.

Introduction of Immunohistochemical Analysis in Psychiatry

With recent advances in immunohistochemistry (IHC) techniques, immunohistochemistry now plays an increasingly important role in the study of psychiatric disorders, especially in mouse models of psychiatric disorders where the characterization of cellular patterns of protein expression becomes critical. Biomarkers in psychiatry can be characterized by protein blotting, ELISA, FACS and many other techniques, but ultimately visual localization of proteins in the context of specific cellular and tissue morphological features requires IHC methods.

Fig. 1 PH8 immunohistochemistry at the three rostrocaudal DRN levels. (Matthews PR, et al., 2012)

Immunohistochemical Analysis Services

Ace Therapeutics offers standard histochemical stains as well as complex multiplex immunohistochemical markers. We offer a wide range of stains for different species of brain tissue and other tissues such as Nissl, H&E, Campbell Switzer Silver, Bielschowsky Silver, Thioflavin S, Congo Red, DAPI, etc. We use numerous antibodies individually or in combination to achieve a comprehensive analysis of neurochemical systems such as dopamine, glutamate, serotonin, and gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA).

Our Workflow

• Tissue fixation

Tissue sections were removed from the recording chamber and immersed in 4% PFA (paraformaldehyde) in 0.1 M phosphate buffer pH 7.4 overnight.

• Preparing Tris-Triton solution and rinse the sections

Prepare 50 mM TRIS buffered saline and add 1% Triton X-100 to a proportion of the solution. Stir with a magnetic stirrer until the triton is dissolved. Carefully remove the 4% PFA solution without disturbing the sections. Wash with 1% Tris-Triton solution for 10 minutes with agitation. Repeat this step 2 more times until 3 washes are completed.

• Blocking with NGS for 1 hour with agitation

A blocking solution was prepared by adding 4% serum to 1% Tris-Triton solution, and the blocking solution was added to the brain sections and left for 1 hour with agitation.

• Adding primary antibodies

Prepare the primary antibody solution by diluting the primary antibody in Tris-Triton solution to the correct dilution. Remove the blocking solution and add the primary antibody solution to the sections. Incubate overnight at 4℃ with agitation.

• Rinsing tissue, adding secondary antibody

Wash sections with 1% Tris-Triton solution for 10 minutes under agitation. Prepare the secondary antibody solution by diluting the secondary antibody in Tris-Triton solution to the correct dilution factor. Remove the wash solution, add the secondary antibody solution to the sections, and incubate for 1 hour at room temperature.

• Cover slipping

Remove the secondary antibody solution. Wash with TRIS buffered saline solution under agitation for 10 minutes. Carefully place the section on the slide. Apply mounting medium and coverslip. After applying the coverslip, visualize the sample with a confocal microscope.

What Can We Help You Achieve in Psychiatry with IHC?

• Detecting mental illness-related brain disorders
• Sorting through the multiple layers of cells in the brain and their various subtypes
• Markers of microglia and neurons
• Understand brain function under neuropathological conditions
• Detect pathology in the endocytosis-autophagy-lysosome pathway, such as changes in the number, type and distribution of vesicles, and the expression levels of individual molecules in the pathway
• Characterize immune cells
• Assessing the targeting or off-target binding of antibody drugs
• Study drug metabolism in antipsychotic diseases
• Visualize reporter gene products, such as green fluorescent protein (GFP)
• Examining abnormal hippocampal function
• Examining the distribution and expression of GABA(B) receptors in the prefrontal cortex in autopsy subjects with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder

Our Advantages

• Eliminates false-positive results
• Consistent, reliable and clear results
• Compatible with manual and automated platforms
• Cost-effective and time-saving

Ace Therapeutics is dedicated to providing IHC services to clients working in the field of anti-psychotic drug development and preclinical research. We offer a wide range of IHC staining colors to choose from, giving you maximum flexibility in planning your multiplex immunohistochemistry protocols.

Reference

1. Matthews PR, Harrison PJ. A morphometric, immunohistochemical, and in situ hybridization study of the dorsal raphe nucleus in major depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, and suicide. J Affect Disord. 2012, 137(1-3):125-134.