{"entity":{"id":"ihc-autostainers-histology-automation","kind":"technology","name":"Histology automation and IHC autostainers","aka":[],"tldr":"Histology automation is the robots that process tissue into slides and stain them for biomarkers such as HER2 and PD-L1, the same way every time.","summary":"Tissue processors, embedding stations, and microtomes (Sakura Tissue-Tek, Leica, Epredia) feed IHC/ISH autostainers (Roche VENTANA BenchMark ULTRA, Leica BOND, Agilent Dako Omnis, Sakura Tissue-Tek Genie) that run FDA-approved companion assays under locked protocols; staining platform, clone, and scoring guide are label-specific. Lab automation and tracking (barcoded cassettes and slides) reduce misidentification errors.","status":"standard-of-care","asOf":"2026-09-08","links":[],"tags":["supporting"],"related":[],"cancers":[],"sections":["diagnostics"],"technologies":["histopathology-ihc","companion-diagnostic","whole-slide-scanners","reference-laboratories"],"targets":[],"drugs":[],"companies":["roche-genentech","leica-biosystems","agilent","sakura-finetek"],"institutions":[],"pathways":[],"terms":[],"trials":[],"people":[],"bottlenecks":[],"keyPapers":[],"journals":[],"dependsOn":[],"notes":[],"principle":"Automated reagent dispensing, incubation, and detection chemistry on slides with barcode-driven protocols and on-board quality controls.","strengths":["Reproducibility across labs","Regulatory-approved closed assays"],"limitations":["Vendor lock-in to reagent ecosystems","Assays not interchangeable across platforms","Capital cost for small labs"]},"route":"/technologies/ihc-autostainers-histology-automation/","neighbours":{"section":[{"id":"diagnostics","kind":"section","name":"Diagnostics & Biomarkers","route":"/fronts/diagnostics/"}],"technology":[{"id":"companion-diagnostic","kind":"technology","name":"Companion diagnostics","route":"/technologies/companion-diagnostic/"},{"id":"histopathology-ihc","kind":"technology","name":"Histopathology & immunohistochemistry","route":"/technologies/histopathology-ihc/"},{"id":"reference-laboratories","kind":"technology","name":"Reference laboratories and companion-diagnostic testing","route":"/technologies/reference-laboratories/"},{"id":"whole-slide-scanners","kind":"technology","name":"Whole-slide scanners and image management","route":"/technologies/whole-slide-scanners/"}],"company":[{"id":"agilent","kind":"company","name":"Agilent Technologies (Dako)","route":"/companies/agilent/"},{"id":"leica-biosystems","kind":"company","name":"Leica Biosystems (Danaher)","route":"/companies/leica-biosystems/"},{"id":"roche-genentech","kind":"company","name":"Roche / Genentech","route":"/companies/roche-genentech/"},{"id":"sakura-finetek","kind":"company","name":"Sakura Finetek","route":"/companies/sakura-finetek/"}],"paper":[{"id":"paper-pages-immunoscore-international-validation-lancet-2018","kind":"paper","name":"International validation of the consensus Immunoscore for the classification of colon cancer","route":"/key-papers/paper-pages-immunoscore-international-validation-lancet-2018/"}]}}