Giemsa stain is available in most developing nations for malarial parasite detection. In the absence of Wright stain, Giemsa is used to perform differential assessments. We are comparing these stains using buffers to determine the optimal stain for differential analysis. We compared Giemsa with reverse osmosis drinking water (RO), deionized water (DI), buffer at pH 7.2, to Wright’s stain with RO and DI, using Modified-Wright’s stain with buffer in automated slide stainer for control. Blood samples (n=3) were drawn from the research team and analyzed with protocols. Wright’s stain with DI performed equivalent to control for white blood cell (WBC), platelets (PLT), and red blood cell (RBC). Undiluted Giemsa with DI has good staining of WBCs and PLTs, moderate staining of RBCs (grayish discoloration). Diluted Giemsa with buffer has poor RBC (pale ghost cells), good WBC, and good PLT staining. Diluted Giemsa with DI has good staining of PLTs, poor staining of RBCs, and moderate staining of WBCs. Undiluted Giemsa with RO has poor staining of RBCs, moderate staining of PLTs and WBCs. Diluted Giemsa with RO has poor staining of RBCs and WBCs, and moderate staining of PLTs. Wright with RO has poor staining of RBCs, WBCs, and PLTs. We recommend using Wright stain with DI water but undiluted Giemsa with DI water is an adequate substitute.

Noah Gistover would like to thank their faculty advisor Tim Randolph for their support of this project.