A Simple Method of Staining Juxtaglomerular Granules in the Rat Kidney for High Resolution Light Microscopy

A simple method for the demonstration of juxtaglomerular granules in Epon embedded semithin (0.5-1 micrometer) sections has been developed as follows: sections are prepared as for routine electron microscopy except that before dehydration, the tissues are immersed in 0.5% uranyl acetate in Veronal acetate buffer (pH 5.0) overnight at room temperature. After sectioning on an ultramicrotome, the semithin sections are briefly stained with toluidine blue-pyronin Y. After staining, the section is rinsed in running tap water and then air dried. Under a light microscope with a 40 X or a 100 X objective, the juxtaglomerular granules appear as deep purple particles and are thus easily separated from the bluish cytoplasm of the juxtaglomerular cells. Cellular organelles in other cells of the kidney were also clearly stained and their fine structure distinguishable.