Auramine–rhodamine stain

Oocysts of Cryptosporidium parvum stained with the fluorescent auramine–rhodamine stain.

The auramine–rhodamine stain (AR), also known as the Truant auramine–rhodamine stain, is a histological technique used to visualize acid-fast bacilli using fluorescence microscopy, notably species in the Mycobacterium genus.^[1] Acid-fast organisms display a reddish-yellow fluorescence.^[2] Although the auramine–rhodamine stain is not as specific for acid-fast organisms (e.g. Mycobacterium tuberculosis or Nocardia) as the Ziehl–Neelsen stain, it is more affordable and more sensitive, therefore it is often utilized as a screening tool.

AR stain is a mixture of auramine O and rhodamine B. It is carcinogenic.

See also

• Auramine phenol stain (AP stain)
• Biological stains

References

1. Kommareddi S.; Abramowsky C.; Swinehart G.; Hrabak L. (1984). "Nontuberculous mycobacterial infections: comparison of the fluorescent auramine-O and Ziehl–Neelsen techniques in tissue diagnosis". Human Pathology. 15 (11): 1085–1089. doi:10.1016/S0046-8177(84)80253-1. PMID 6208117.
2. Abe, C. (August 2003). 結核とそれらの上達テストの実験室テストの標準化 [Standardization of laboratory tests for tuberculosis and their proficiency testing]. Kekkaku (in Japanese). 78 (8): 541–551. ISSN 0022-9776. PMID 14509226.