Staining of intracellular granules in fresh epiphyseal cartilage by cationic dyes

Hand-cut sections of fresh epiphyseal cartilage from young rats were stained at pH 4.5 in 0.01% solutions of various cationic dyes of the thiazine, oxazine, azine, triphenylmethane, acridine, and phthallocyanin classes. The intracellular β-and γ-metachromatic granules, previously demonstrated in fresh tissues with toluidine blue, were also demonstrated well with azure A, methylene blue, and brilliant cresyl blue. The granules were also demonstrated, but not as well, by thionin, neutral red, safranin O, toluylene blue, and acridine orange. Under the conditions of staining, the reserve zone matrix and the lower hypertrophic (calcifying) zone matrix stained, whereas the proliferative and upper hypertrophic zone matrix did not stain. Gallocyanin, crystal violet, basic fuchsin, azocarmine B, gallamine blue, and alcian blue either did not stain, or gave a different pattern of staining from that described above. It is suggested that the pK and molecular weight of the dyes are important, but not necessarily the only factors in determining the staining of the granules. The results indicate that there is a change in the metachromatic material (presumably proteinpolysaccharide) in both the matrix and cells of epiphyseal cartilage, which appears to be related to calcification.