Tissue Microarray TechnologyA Brief Review

Abstract

In this era of modern revolutionisation in the field of medical laboratory technology, everyone is aiming at taking the innovations from laboratory to bed side. One such technique that is most relevant to the pathologic community is Tissue Microarray (TMA) technology. This is becoming quite popular amongst all the members of this family, right from laboratory scientists to clinicians and residents to technologists. The reason for this technique to gain popularity is attributed to its cost effectiveness and time saving protocols. Though, every technique is accompanied by disadvantages, the benefits out number them. This technique is very versatile as many downstream molecular assays such as immunohistochemistry, cytogenetic studies, Fluorescent In situ-Hybridisation (FISH) etc., can be carried out on a single slide with multiple numbers of samples. It is a very practical approach that aids effectively to identify novel biomarkers in cancer diagnostics and therapeutics. It helps in assessing the molecular markers on a large scale very quickly. Also, the quality assurance protocols in pathological laboratory has exploited TMA to a great extent. However, the application of TMA technology is beyond oncology. This review shall focus on the different aspects of this technology such as construction of TMA, instrumentation, types, advantages and disadvantages and utilisation of the technique in various disease conditions.

Keywords

• Molecular pathology
• Tissue bank
• Tumour
• Tumour diagnostics