Histological Methods

Histology is the branch of science that deals with the study of tissues. Viral products, including proteins and nucleic acids (DNA or RNA), can be detected in histological samples. These can be clinical tissue samples (e.g., biopsies, post-mortem tissues) or laboratory-maintained infected cells (cell culture). Histological techniques can be combined or performed individually. For example, viral proteins and nucleic acids can be detected in the same tissue section (Renshaw 2017). In contrast to liquid samples (e.g., blood, urine, CSF, pulmonary aspirate), tissue analysis can provide additional information on cellular morphology and tissue architecture. Thus, histology can reveal the extent of cytopathic effects and cell tropism of the virus.