Light microscopic visualization of colloidal gold on resin-embedded tissue.

RNase labeled with colloidal gold was used as a model for the present technique evolved for the light microscopic localization of gold-labeled substances in semithin resin-embedded sections. Tissue sections placed on glass slides were treated with the gold-enzyme complex and subsequently exposed to a photographic developed containing silver lactate. During the development gold particles are encapsulated in growing shells of metallic silver and gradually made visible in the light microscope. The amplification method can be applied to paraffin-embedded and frozen sections as well. This technique may prove useful as a supplement to studies utilizing colloidal gold or silver as markers normally used at the electron microscopic level.