In Situ Hybridization and In Situ Reverse Transcription Polymerase Chain Reaction in Human Bone Sections

Gene expression in bone can be assessed by several techniques such as reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), differential display PCR, subtractive hybridization, and microchip arrays. The problem with all of these techniques is that they do not allow cellular localization of the genes under investigation. In situ hybridization (ISH) circumvents this problem. It is possible to localize precisely sites of gene expression using ISH in intact cells and tissue sections, allowing one to build up a more complete picture of the processes occurring in the disease under investigation.