SREL Reprint #2015

Responses at the tissue level: quantitative methods in histopathology applied to ecotoxicology

Charles S. Jagoe 

Conclusion: Although qualitative approaches to studies of pathologies caused by environmental pollutants are useful in many circumstances, the utility of quantitative methods is generally underappreciated. Quantitative results can often provide a much clearer picture of the ways in which organisms respond to stress. A number of relatively simple techniques are available to extract quantitative information from histological preparations. These allow the detection of more subtle effects, and better estimation of the relation between dose and response than purely descriptive approaches. Whereas other disciplines studying effects at the suborganismal level such as biochemistry and physiology have strong quantitative traditions, this mindset is often lacking in morphologists. By this measure, histopathology is not as well developed as a predictive science, or as capable of rigorous hypothesis testing as these other disciplines. However, the utility of histopathology as a tool to detect and understand pollutant effects is unquestionable. The further refinement and application of quantitative techniques can only help improve our comprehension of responses to pollutants at the cell and tissue levels.

SREL Reprint #2015

Jagoe, C.H. 1996. Responses at the tissue level: quantitative methods in histopathology applied to ecotoxicology. pp. 163-196 In: M. C. Newman and C. H. Jagoe (Eds.). Ecotoxicology: A Hierarchical Treatment. CRC Press, Inc., Boca Raton, FL.

This information was provided by the University of Georgia's Savannah River Ecology Laboratory (srel.uga.edu).