Golgi stain

biochemistry

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July 23, 2026

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The Golgi stain, also known as the "black reaction," is a technique developed by Italian cytologist Camillo Golgi in 1873. This method involves fixing nervous tissue with potassium dichromate and then treating it with silver nitrate. The stain allows for the visualization of neurons and their structures, including the Golgi apparatus, which Golgi identified as an "internal reticular apparatus".12

The Golgi apparatus itself is a membrane-bound organelle found in eukaryotic cells. It consists of flattened, stacked pouches called cisternae and plays a crucial role in modifying, sorting, and packaging proteins and lipids into vesicles for transport to various destinations within or outside the cell. While initially met with skepticism, the existence of the Golgi apparatus was confirmed with the advent of the electron microscope in the 1950s.31

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Golgi apparatus
History of discovery
…it is known as the Golgi stain. In this technique nervous tissue is fixed with potassium dichromate and then suffused with silver nitrate. While examining neurons that Golgi stained using his black reaction, he identified an “internal reticular apparatus.” This structure became known as the Golgi apparatus, though some scientists…
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…it is known as the Golgi stain. In this technique nervous tissue is fixed with potassium dichromate and then suffused with silver nitrate. While examining neurons that Golgi stained using his black reaction, he identified an “internal reticular apparatus.” This structure became known as the Golgi apparatus, though some scientists…
Read More