pre-embedding

Pre-embedding is a technique of embedding in the course of immunoelectron microscopy for the primary antibodies to react with the target antigenic proteins immediately after fixation of block tissues or cells. The name of “pre-embedding” originates from the fact that the immune-reaction is performed prior to resin embedding. The advantage of pre-embedding is that antibodies can react with the antigenic proteins in advance of the occurrence of denaturation or outflow of the antigenic proteins. However, pre-embedding has two major disadvantages. One is that antibodies do not stain uniformly the whole block tissue because staining is made for the block tissue prior to resin embedding. Another is that a large amount of expensive antibodies is needed for pre-embedding. In general, pre-embedding is a simpler technique than post-embedding.

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