Automated Double In Situ Detection of Mouse Lgr5 mRNA and Lysozyme Protein in Examining the Neighboring Cell Types of the Mouse Intestinal Crypt.

Automated detection of mRNAs and proteins in the same tissue sections is not a routine procedure. Successful experiment depends on the preparation of the tissue, the detection procedure, as well as the quality of the probes and antibodies. The multiplexed detections require experimental conditions, preserving the state of the molecular targets of interest and providing expression pattern of each target the same as in a single detection. Here we describe in detail the automated protocols used to detect mouse Lgr5 mRNA by in situ hybridization and immunofluorescence detection of lysozyme in the same mouse intestinal sections. Both the in situ hybridization and the protein detection were performed with an automated staining processor and provided strong and reproducible results.