Camwood (Baphia nitida) alcoholic extract: A suitable counter stain for haematoxylin in the demonstration of liver and kidney histomorphology

The counter staining ability of Camwood (Baphia nitida) alcoholic extract and its electrostatic compatibility with haematoxylin was determined. One gram of locally sourced red paste was subjected to simple extraction in 100 ml of 70 and 95% alcohol, respectively. Primary staining of buffered formalin fixed, paraffin embedded liver and kidney tissues was done with haematoxylin followed by counter staining with extract solutions at different experimental times of 1, 5, 30 and 60 min respectively. Parallel staining was done with H&E as control. Results show impressive nuclei-cytoplasm contrast at 60 min. It was therefore concluded that B. nitida is a suitable counter stain for haematoxylin stains especially on liver and kidney tissues and may be a potential alternative to eosin in the demonstration of tissue morphology. Key words: Camwood, haematoxylin, natural dye, liver, kidney.