Guided protein extraction from formalin-fixed tissues for quantitative multiplex analysis avoids detrimental effects of histological stains

Formalin fixed and paraffin embedded (FFPE) tissues are the basis for histopathological diagnosis of many diseases around the world. For translational research and routine diagnostics, protein analysis from FFPE tissues is very important. We evaluated the potential influence of six histological stains, including hematoxylin (Mayer and Gill), fast red, light green, methyl blue and toluidine blue, for yield, electrophoretic mobility in 1-D gels, and immunoreactivity of proteins isolated from formalin-fixed breast cancer tissues. Proteins extracted from stained FFPE tissues using a recently established technique were compared with proteins obtained from the same tissues but without prior histological staining. Western blot and quantitative protein lysate microarray analysis demonstrated that histological staining can result in decreased protein yield but may not have much influence on immunoreactivity and electrophoretic mobility. Interestingly, not all staining protocols tested are compatible with subsequent protein analysis. The commonly used hematoxylin staining was found to be suitable for multiplexed quantitative protein measurement technologies although protein extraction was less efficient. For best results we suggest a guided protein extraction method, in which an adjacent hematoxylin/eosin-stained tissue section is used to control dissection of an unstained specimen for subsequent protein extraction and quantification for research and diagnosis.