Diff-Quik

Diff-Quik® is a commercial stain commonly used in histological staining to rapidly stain and differentiate a variety of smears, commonly blood and vaginal smears. It is based on a modification of the Wright Giemsa stain pioneered by Bernard Witlin in 1970. It has advantages over the older Wright Giemsa staining technique, as it reduces the 4 minute process into a simplified 15 second operation, and allows for selective increased eosinophilic or basophilic staining depending upon the time the smear is left in the staining solutions.

Additional recommended knowledge

Essential Laboratory Skills Guide

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Components

The Diff-Quik stain consists of 3 solutions:

• Diff-Quik fixative reagent
  • Triarylmethane dye
  • Methanol
• Diff-Quik solution I (eosinophilic)
  • Xanthene dye
  • pH buffer
  • Sodium azide
• Diff-Quik solution II (basophilic)
  • Thiazine dye
  • pH buffer

Results

Alternatives

• Papanicolaou stain
• Wright Giemsa stain
• Romanowsky staining