Hematoxylin and Eosin staining identifies medium to large bacterial aggregates with a reliable specificity: A comparative analysis of follicular bacterial aggregates in axillary biopsies using PNA-FISH and Hematoxylin and Eosin staining

Abstract

Background

Although Peptide Nucleic Acid (PNA) - Fluorescence in situ Hybridization (FISH) and Confocal Laser Scanning Microscopy (CLSM) is the reference tool in the study of bacterial aggregates/biofilms, it may also be rather time-consuming. This study aimed to investigate the sensitivity and specificity between bacterial aggregates identified by Hematoxylin and Eosin (HE) staining versus bacterial aggregates in corresponding PNA-FISH samples.

Method

Axillary biopsies were obtained in 24 healthy controls. HE stained - and PNA-FISH samples were investigated using traditional light microscopy and CLSM, respectively.

Results

The data demonstrate that HE staining identifies large bacterial aggregates (> 10 μm) with a sensitivity of 0.43 and specificity of one. The methods, however, are not equivalent as demonstrated by a McNemar's test (p = 0.04).

Conclusion

Where bacterial aggregates > 10 μm in diameter, HE staining may offer a rapid and practical low-cost tool to evaluate bacterial aggregates.

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