The Effectiveness of Honey as a Substitute for Formalin in the Histological Fixation of Tissue

Abstract

The preservative and antimicrobial powers of honey have been known for centuries. In addition, studies have shown that honey has acidic and dehydrative properties. The influence of these powers on tissue fixation was determined in this work to ascertain whether honey could prove to be a safe and acceptable substitute for formalin in the histological fixation of tissue. In this study, rat liver and kidney tissues were fixed at 37°C and at room temperature with and without agitation in concentrations of honey ranging from 10% to 100% diluted with distilled water. Tissues were fixed for 24 h, processed to paraffin wax, sectioned and stained by hematoxylin and eosin, and examined microscopically. Initial results obtained from this work concluded that tissues fixed in honey concentrations of 10% and 20% at room temperature with and without agitation gave comparable results with those obtained by formalin-fixed control tissues. Higher concentrations of honey were less successful and produced slower penetration rates, hardening of tissues, and difficulty in sectioning. Nonetheless, the results using low concentrations of honey for tissue fixation were encouraging and make further research using this and other brands of honey with a wider range of tissues, fixation times, and special stains of great interest. (The J Histotechnol 29:173, 2006)Submitted June 27, 2006; accepted with revisions July 25, 2006