Golgi-Cox Staining of Neuronal Dendrites and Dendritic Spines With FD Rapid GolgiStain™ Kit

Curr Protoc Neurosci. 2019 Jun;88(1):e69. doi: 10.1002/cpns.69.

Abstract

The Golgi-Cox method has been one of the most effective techniques for studying the morphology of neuronal dendrites and dendritic spines. However, the reliability and time-consuming process of Golgi-Cox staining have been major obstacles to the widespread application of this technique. To overcome these shortcomings and to promote this invaluable technique, we developed the FD Rapid GolgiStain™ Kit based on the principle of the methods described by Ramón-Moliner in 1970 and Glaser and Van der Loos in 1981. The kit significantly improves and simplifies the Golgi-Cox technique. This kit is reliable for visualizing morphological details of neurons, allowing for analysis of various parameters of dendritic morphology-such as dendritic length and branching pattern and dendritic spine number, shape, and size-in both animal and postmortem human brains. A 40-min instructional video for tissue freezing, cryosectioning, and staining is provided. © 2019 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Keywords: FD Rapid GolgiStain™ kit; Golgi staining; Golgi-Cox; dendritic morphology; dendritic spines.

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Dendrites / chemistry
  • Dendrites / physiology
  • Dendritic Spines / chemistry*
  • Dendritic Spines / physiology
  • Golgi Apparatus / chemistry*
  • Golgi Apparatus / physiology
  • Humans
  • Neurons / chemistry*
  • Neurons / physiology
  • Silver Staining / methods
  • Staining and Labeling / methods*