Fluorescence in situ hybridization(FISH)

Abstract

Dr. Seuss's eloquent One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish may have been describing one of the most signi ficant advancements in clinical cytogenetics, fluorescence in situ hybridization or FISH [1]. While the basic in situ technology was developed more than 30 years ago (Levsky JM, Singer RH, J Cell Sci, 116(Pt 14): 2833-2838, 2010), the application involving fl uorescent detection of probe DNA hybridized to chromosomal target sequences was introduced to the clinical cytogenetics laboratories in the late 1980s (Pinkel D, Gray JW, Trask B, van den Engh G, Fuscoe J, van Dekken H, Cold Spring Harb Symp Quant Biol, 51(Pt 1): 151-157, 1986). The overall hybridization process was essentially the same as that used for radioactive probes, but the major advantage was the incorporation of fluorescent detection of the probe sequences that allowed for high sensitivity in a simple and quick assay.